The Death of Link
by The Twilight Wolf
Summary: [COMPLETED] An epic tale of how Link transforms from a humble swordsmith into a hero on an incredible quest to stop the greatest evil Hyrule has ever seen, and pays the ultimate price in doing so. Please R
1. Graveyard

**Chapter One: Graveyard**

Brian was born unto two parents, William and Kathleen. He had the childhood that any boy of his time would have. He played tag with his friends, went hunting with his father, and ran races with his friends. When he was of the age of twelve, he was sent away to a boarding school, like all Hylian males having attained unto the age of twelve, to be generally educated and learn a craft so that he would be able to support his future family. On the surface it seemed like he was a normal boy, but deep down, he was not. He was tormented each and every day at school for being different. The torments went on from a simple "Kick Me" sign on his back to being tripped in school. Why, one time he even found himself being used to keep a lunch table supported. He did get used to this over time, as he looked at it, it's better than being ignored. His torments went on day by day, until one day, the other kids took it too far. Brian actually got beat up one night before lights out, so badly he suffered a broken nose as well as some bruised ribs. He decided that he would not take any of this anymore.

Now, Brian was a peaceful child. He was also a lousy fighter, he decided, because he never fought in his life. Rather than risk further injury from his tormentors, he decided to run away. He ran away that night, in the middle of a rain storm. It did not matter where he would end up, so long as he got away from his own personal hell. He ran and ran and ran, stumbling at various points, and stopping to catch his breath. After about an hour or so from his initial leaving, he arrived in a graveyard. Brian was by no means fearless, and this graveyard scared him. As lightning flashed and thunder cracked behind him, he ran ahead, pressing onward, to escape the graveyard. About half of the way through, he tripped on a rock. He fell, and rolled into a gravestone, headfirst. About five minutes later, he got up, and rubbed his head where it had made contact with the blunt gravestone. He looked upon the gravestone and saw name LINK. He had heard stories of Link's adventures at bedtime from his father, but never thought that they were real. Even if they were, what were the odds that this would be that Link.

"It's a common name," thought Brian.

He continued looking at the gravestone, and was amazed to learn that the birth of this Link was the exact same as he heard from his father. He now knew that it was the Link of legend, the Link who defeated Ganondorf.

"But how, how did he die?", thought Brian.

His father had always told him that it was of natural causes, but by the date of his death suggested otherwise, that he had died in his late teens. He continued to look down the gravestone and he found a strange engraving, a marking of three congruent triangles, two next to each other, and one on top of the two. He did not recognize this, and was intrigued. He ran his hand across the marking, and took it in.

By now the thunder and lightning had stopped, but the rain continued pouring. He could not see the moon, and therefore could not tell what time it was. He knew he was far from his boarding school, but he knew that he was not far from his home. He decided to go to his home and spend the rest of the night there, and go back to school in the morning. He began his trek to his house, with the thoughts of Link racing in his head. The journey went by faster than he would have thought, mostly because he was distracted from the outside world by his findings in the graveyard. He arrived at his house, only to find his father with a foreboding look on his face


	2. Back Home

**Chapter Two: Back Home**

Rain was pitter-pattering upon the roof of the house as Brian stood in front of the door, gazing with fear upon his father, who looked angrier than Brian had ever seen him before. Brian knew that there would be consequences for what he had done, but still he was afraid to face him. After all, he still was a child, and had much growing up to do.

"Brian", boomed the voice of William, "Where have you been?".

"A...a...at the gr...gr...graveyard" replied the stuttering Brian, afraid of the punishment that awaited him.

"Your mother and I just got a message from your headmaster, saying you disappeared earlier. Do you have any idea how worried we were?", said William, condemnation in his voice.

"Yes, sir", replied Brian.

"Why did you do it?", questioned William.

"Because. I hated that place.", explained Brian. "I got picked on all the time, and I don't even want to become a carpenter. It sounded like it would be a nice career to do, you know, fix things, build things, and work with wood. But it stinks. It's so boring. I don't want to do it anymore.

"Do you think I wanted to be a blacksmith?", asked William. "I didn't. But I did it anyway because when I was your age there were few blacksmiths and it was a guaranteed trade. I still don't like it to this day, but I do it anyway to support my family. And that's the attitude you should have as well. Things are not always going to go your way. You can't always get to do what you want, or get what you want, and I'd like to think that your mother and I raised you to think the same."

"You're right," replied Brian. "So what are we going to do now?".

At this point William looked upon his son and began to feel sorry for him. After all, any kid in his situation would do the same, if not worse. To him, it was better than fighting and getting kicked out of the school. Still, he thought, he should be punished, if only to discourage things from happening again in the future and causing such stress for he and his wife. He could not think of suitable punishment because most of the time, Brian was away at school. He realized that having Brian stay at school would be punishment enough.

"Son, here's what we're going to do", said William. "You are going to go to bed for the rest of the night, and at the rooster's crow, we are going to start out and go back to your school. As for your punishment for running away, I think that going back to your school will be punishment enough. However, you must also learn to deal with your problems. Try and become their friends. Do that, and your time at school will fly by".

Brian and William walked across the house to Brian's bedroom, not a word between them. Brian was tired, but William had a pensive look upon his face. Outside the rain lessened and lessened, and finally stopped. Once they arrived at the bedroom, William watched Brian hop into bed, and then came over to talk to him once more.

"Good night, Brian. Sleep well, for tomorrow will be an early day".

"Dad, I can't exactly sleep after what I saw tonight".

"Why is that?"

"Well, when I was in the graveyard I saw a gravestone that bore the name 'Link'. I looked further upon it and saw that his birth was the exact same of the Link that you told me bed time stories when I was younger. It even had a strange symbol on it".

At this point Brian climbed out of bed and drew the strange symbol he saw in the ground with his finger. William had pulled a wooden chair close to the bed and sat on it. William looked upon the symbol drawn by Brian, and then looked outside, to the now starry night sky, and paused a moment, thinking to himself. He finally stopped looking, and turned his head to look upon his son.

"Son, in light of what happened tonight and what caused it, I think it's time I stopped sugar-coating the 'Link Stories'. It's time that you knew the truth of what happened to Hyrule's greatest warrior. Maybe after you hear this, you will find some inspiration to do better when it comes to interacting with your peers. Anyhow, where to begin, where to begin. Well, let's start at the beginning of what is known about the one called Link, his childhood."


	3. Link's Beginning

**Chapter 3: Link's Beginning**

Link grew up an orphan, his mother died during birth and his father when he was the age of five. Link was placed in an orphanage, and spent most of his childhood there. While there he learned how to fish, how to hunt, which berries on which trees were edible and which were poisonous, and in general how to get food for himself when he became old enough to leave the orphanage.

When he was twelve, he went to boarding school. The orphanage was unable to afford boarding school, so they made an agreement with the boarding school that Link would do various odd jobs and chores around the school, and call it even. While there, Link was picked on because he was the only one there who had to do so many chores and odd jobs. Everyone thought he was being a teachers pet and a suck up, but Link was too embarrassed to admit that he couldn't afford to come here and had to do all that work just to learn. Link did take solace in the fact that he would be a better person for having endured all of that, and went on with his education Link learned how to become a swordsmith, and became quite apt at it. When Link reached the age of seventeen, he left the boarding school, having become a more than proficient swordsmith and having learned everything that a Hylian male should need to know.

A week after leaving the school, Link bought a small house near Lake Hylia, and opened his swordsmith business there. He made a living making and fixing swords, and catching fish for meals. He became renowned as the finest swordsmith available. He was so famous that the King of Hyrule employed Link as a swordsmith for the guards of the castle. Link would deliver new, sharpened, and repaired swords each month. Each time he went, he made it a point to go and see Princess Zelda and she him. They were quite fond of each other, and often went on picnics together after Link had made a delivery.

"This is the life", thought Link one night in the middle of his eighteenth year, and slowly drifted off to sleep.

That night, Link had a dream that would change his life, his destiny, forever. As the legend goes, the Spirit of the Master Sword came to him in a dream and talked to him.

"Link", the Spirit said, "You are about to reach a crossroads in your life."

"Who are you", questioned Link.

"Link, I am the Spirit of the Master Sword".

"Okay...this is a little weird"

"This is merely a dream. Link, the crossroads you are about to face will determine your character, and the fate of this very land".

"Crossroads? What crossroads? I'm but a swordsmith who has an easy life."

"Tomorrow you will face your crossroads"

"What is the crossroad which I will face?"

"You will be faced with two paths to take. I can not yet reveal them to you, they will be revealed to you soon. The only thing I can tell you that I have not already told you is to see Princess Zelda tomorrow. Goodbye, young one. Our paths shall cross again, and hopefully you will have taken the right path".

Link woke up with a sweat. Thoughts of his dream were racing in his head. It didn't seem like a dream to him, it seemed so real.

"Why did the Spirit mention seeing Princess Zelda? I'm due to go deliver swords today anyway; could it be more than a coincidence? Surely Zelda will have an answer, she's so smart. I could just look into her eyes and have all my problems float away".

Link looked outside, and saw that it was nearly dawn. Deciding now was as good of a time as any to start the day, since he was already awake; Link got out of bed, got dressed, and went fishing. Fishing relaxed him, and besides, he needed to eat as well. It didn't take long for Link to catch a fish, at which point Link proceeded to prepare the fish, cook it, and eat it for breakfast. After about half an hour of reflecting upon his dream last night, Link packed the swords, and began to walk into the sunrise toward Hyrule Castle.


	4. The King, The Princess, and the Sword

**Chapter 4: The King, The Princess, and the Sword**

Link carried the sack of swords over one shoulder as he walked towards the castle. On his way, grabbed three apples from his favorite apple tree and munched on one while he was on his way to Hyrule Castle, put the other two in his pouch. He looked around at the beautiful scenery, attempting to get last night's dream out of his mind, trying to convince himself that it was just a dream. On his way to Hyrule Castle, he stopped by Lon Lon Ranch, and gave one apple to his favorite horse, Epona. The owner of the ranch, Talon, always enjoyed when Link visited. It was the only time that Epona was ever happy. After having visited Epona, Link continued on towards Hyrule Castle to make this month's delivery.

After about another ten minutes, Link arrived at the gates of the castle. He saw the guard on duty, Mihalich. He knew Mihalich from school; he was at the last year of his schooling when Link first arrived at the school. He was mature for his age, and as a result did not pick on Link at school. 

"Greetings, Mihalich. Fine weather we are having, wouldn't you agree?"

"Greetings, Link. Yes in deed. Is it that time of the month already?"

"Yes, it is. Ten swords to deliver this month. How is your family doing?"

"Quite well, thank you, Link. The king is in his throne room, you know the way"

"Yep, thanks Mihalich. Nice talking to you"

"You too, Link".

Link walked through the castle garden, and into the castle itself. As he made his way up to the throne room, he looked at the paintings on the wall of past kings, and at the suits of armor, still trying to get his mind off of last night's dream. It seemed that it would never get off his mind until he saw Zelda, when he might get an explanation. Link walked into the throne room and bowed reverently towards the king. The king always enjoyed when Link delivered swords, Link was so polite. Also, he enjoyed when Link was with Zelda too. Ever since Link first made a delivery, the king always thought that Link and Zelda should get married, when the time was right.

"How are you, my boy"

"Good, and you, your highness?"

"Nothing to complain about. How many swords is it this month?"

"Ten swords, your highness"

"Ten swords at thirty rupees a piece, that makes, three hundred rupees". The king took the sack of swords from Link, and examined them.

"Link, these swords are high quality. I should pay you extra for them. How's five hundred rupees sound?"

"Oh, sir, I could never accept. I enjoy making and fixing swords. It's no trouble at all for me".

"Very well then. Oh, by the way, Princess Zelda has been waiting to see you. She's at the fountain in the courtyard"

"Thank you, sir". The king handed Link a satchel of three hundred rupees, Link bowed again, and exited the throne room. He was wondering why Zelda would be waiting for him. Usually Link would surprise her when he visited. Link was wondering why she would be waiting for him today of all days. He wondered if it could have something to do with the dream last night. Soon, he would have all his questions answered, as he entered into the courtyard. Link took the remaining apple out of his pouch and shined it up.

"An apple, for the most beautiful girl in all of Hyrule".

Zelda giggled. "Why thank you, Link". Zelda took a bite of the apple and swallowed. She then asked Link the question that would change his life for ever.

"Link, did you have a weird dream last night?"

"Yes, I did. The Spirit of the Master Sword was in it and said I should see you today".

"The Master Sword has chosen"

"What do you mean chosen?"

"Link, it is written that there will come a hero who will wield the Master Sword and defeat the evil in this land. It is my duty to show the chosen one to the Master Sword".

"Wait, I can't be the chosen one. I barely know how to fight. The experience of my fighting is limited. The only time I fought with a sword was when I was ambushed by bandits on a delivery. And all I did was scratch them, and they still stole some of the swords. I'm lucky to be alive after that, now that I think about it"

"Link, you will learn to wield a sword. I have faith in you. Don't worry, everything will be explained in good time".

Zelda grabbed Link's arm and led him to the Shrine of the Master Sword. The Master Sword was the most perfect blade ever forged. Link knew a little about the Master Sword because it was the first sword ever made, and the person who helped make it taught only one person the craft, who in turn taught only one person. This trend went on for many generations, and Link ended up being the last person on that trend. Link knew that only a person pure of heart could grab the handle.

"Grab the handle Link", instructed Zelda.

This was the crossroads Link was told about last night. Now he knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt that is was more than a dream. He could either pick up the blade and become the hero, or walk away from all of this. Link thought about this crossroads for a second, and then realized that Zelda would never lead him astray. Link grabbed the handle, and was immediately transported to a chamber. He landed flat on the ground, and picked himself up. He looked around the blue chamber, and saw it was empty. Then a voice spoke to him.

"Welcome Link. You have chosen the right path".

"Spirit? Is that you"

"Yes, Link. You will become the Hero of Hyrule. But first there is something you must do".

"What's that"?

"Defeat the darkness within yourself".

Link felt a sharp, agonizing pain in his chest. A shadow of himself left his body and walked away from Link until he was about ten feet away from Link. Link saw that this shadow had a sword like he did, and a shield like he did.

"Link, this is your first test", said the Spirit of the Master Sword.

Link panicked, he knew he couldn't fight, and now he had to fight not only for his life, but for the fate of Hyrule.


	5. Dark Link

**Chapter 5: Dark Link**

"Wait, this doesn't make any sense", Link said to himself. "Only a person pure of heart could grab the handle of the Master Sword. So how is there darkness within me? 

"Fool", replied the shadow known as Dark Link. "There is no darkness in your heart. You are a unique individual; you don't keep your darkness in your heart. No, you keep it in your mind"

"Wait, what darkness? I have a good life, I love Zelda, I love my job, what darkness could there be?".

"Remember all those times at school you were picked on and you wanted to fight back but didn't? That's me. Remember when you were five and your father died, and you were so scared? Scared what to do, where to go, who would take care of you? That's me. I am all of your fears, your hatred repressed memories, every negative emotion you have ever felt".

"So then why did I feel a great pain in my chest?"

"That was the Spirit of the Master Sword's doing. Coming out of your head would cause you to die. The Spirit forced me out thru your chest so that you would live. But all the Spirit did was buy you time. I've been waiting since you were five be released, but you repressed me. Now, it's time for you to pay up, for locking me away for so long" 

"There's got to be another way"

"Not after what you have done. The only way is for you to DIE."

And with those words Dark Link charged at Link with all his might and swung his sword at Link. Link brought his shield up at the last moment, causing sparks to fly as Dark Link's sword crashed against Link's shield. Dark Link bashed his shield against Link's sword arm, causing him to drop the Master Sword. Link was momentarily distracted by this, a moment that would allow Dark Link to slice across the left shoulder of Link. Link winced in pain as blood poured from the wound. Link knew he could not pick it up, at least not yet, or he would be slashed by the mighty sword of Dark Link.

"Well look at that, you've dropped your sword. Making my task all the easier", smirked Dark Link.

"Don't count on it", replied Link, through gritted teeth.

Link paced backwards, clutching his shoulder, as Dark Link walked towards him, making sure he was between Link and the Master Sword. Link found his back pressed against the wall of the blue chamber, with Dark Link only a few feet away. Link looked to either side of him, but found no escape. All he had left was his shield in his right arm. Dark Link now raised the sword and swung down. Sparks flew and a loud clang echoed throughout the chamber as Link blocked it with his shield, only to have to block it again when Dark Link swung the blade again.

"I can't keep this up forever", thought Link. "I need to do something. Something now, before I die".

Link blocked yet another swing by his dark counterpart. As soon as he blocked it, he grabbed Dark Link's sword arm with his blood soaked left arm, and struggled with Dark Link for control of the blade.

"Fool, what are you going to do with that blade? You can't fight with it. Unlike the Master Sword, only one of a dark heart can wield it". 

"I don't plan on wielding it", said Link, shaking from the pain in his arm. He forced the blade from the hand of Dark Link. Link then kicked Dark Link in the gut, causing him to double over, giving him a momentary window to escape. Link ran towards the Master Sword and picked it up.

"That won't help you", said Dark Link, as he picked up his sword. "You will still fall to my blade".

"We'll see", replied Link.

The two circled, never taking their eyes off of the other. Dark Link made the first move, charging at Link. He swung his sword, only to have it blocked by the shield of Link. Link knew what was coming next. He took his sword, and moved to slash Dark Link across the torso. Dark Link was too quick for Link, blocking the blow. He swung at Link with all his might, breaking Link's shield. Link took a few steps backward, with Dark Link moving menacingly only a few feet away. 

"It's only a matter of time", breathed Dark Link. 

"That's what you think", replied Link, breathing heavily. Link knew he would need a miracle to survive. He had no means of defense, and had to find away to kill his dark self. Dark Link closed the gap. Link came to the realization that he could no longer run from his problems, he could no longer back away from things, and he would have to face his fears. And now was the time to start.

"You aren't going to back away?"

"No. I would have to face you like this soon anyway, better make it now" 

"Your funeral"

Dark Link swung at the leg of Link. Link could not react in time, and Link's right thigh was cut. Link stumbled a little, trying to re-adjust his balance to his left leg. Blood began to pour from the wound and stain Link's pants as Dark Link raised his sword. He swung at Link's head, and Link ducked just in time, and bore the pain in his left arm and slashed the right leg of Dark Link. Dark Link winced in pain, but kept on fighting. He again tried to slice Link's head off. Link didn't duck this time, he knew Dark Link would be expecting it. He watched the blade with his eyes, and just as it was a few inches away, he leaned back as far as he could, pain filling his right leg, and watched the blade cut nothing but air. Link took this opportunity to cut Dark Link across the torso, causing him to grab it with his shield arm. Link then swung the Master Sword at the sword of Dark Link with all his might, causing a vibration to go thru Dark Link's arm and ultimately causing Dark Link to drop his sword and echo through the chamber.

"You wouldn't try, try and kill me, would you Link?"

"You tried to kill me. You wanted to kill me. Why should I do any different?"

"Because, you, you are the good one"

"True, but still, you need to be defeated. Someone of pure darkness can't be safe wandering around".

Link winced in pain swung his sword against Dark Link's shield with all his might, causing it to shatter. He then took the Master Sword, and stabbed Dark Link in the stomach. No blood came from Dark Link, he was nothing but a shadow. Link withdrew the sword, and began to limp away, holding his right thigh with his hand. Dark Link reached over and grabbed his sword.

"I'm not going that easily". He charged at Link, who was still limping away, back turned. Dark Link raised his sword. Link was planning on this. He turned around immediately and stabbed Dark Link in the chest. He drove the Master Sword until the handle was pressed against his chest.

"Now, it's over", said Link, glaring into the face of Dark Link. He withdrew his blade, and proceeded to walk away as Dark Link collapsed on the ground and disappeared. 

"Link, you have overcome the darkness within you" said the Spirit of the Master Sword. "Now, you are truly ready to begin your quest".

Link was transported out of the blue chamber and into the Shrine of the Master Sword. He turned around, and was face to face with Zelda.


	6. The Quest Unfolds

**Chapter 6: The Quest Unfolds**

Link was face to face with Zelda, who was smiling. The scene faded, and soon Link passed out. About an hour later, he woke up, with Zelda still standing over him, still smiling politely.

"What just happened?" asked Link.

"You passed out. Tis to be expected, especially after you first grip the legendary blade you hold in your left hand. Are you going to be alright?" asked Zelda.

Link thought to himself, was his battle real? He felt the pain, he felt warm blood run down his arm and his leg, but how could it have been real? Link felt his left shoulder and felt no blood, but he definitely felt a gash. "It had to have been real," Link thought. "How else would I have gotten that gash?" Link slowly rose to his feet, favoring his right leg, still injured from his battle.

"Yea, I'll be fine, thanks", replied Link.

"Well then, I should begin telling you what your quest is. Link, are you familiar with the seven wonders of the world?"

"Yes, The Gardens of the Forest, The Cave in the Volcano, The Lighthouse on the Lake, The Temple in the Desert, The Underground Dungeon, The Tower on the Mountain, and The Floating Castle at the End of Charted Territory. No one knows how they got built, which is why they are wonders"

"Yes and no. They were built in Ancient Times by the ancient peoples. They existed for a purpose. They were the places where the seven guardian sages would stay and protect each area. The sages collectively protect the Triforce which lies in the Sacred Realm"

"Okay...but how does that relate to my quest?"

"There exists a man by the name of Ganondorf. He seeks the Triforce for his own evil purposes. And his only way to achieve his goal is to wreak havoc upon the wonders. You, you Link are the chosen one that will prevent this"

"How? I have never seen, or even heard of this "Ganondorf"

"No one knows where he is unfortunately. He will go to these locations though and attempt to weaken the force of the sages who rest in these wonders."

"So wait, let me get this straight. I have to stop him with no clue as to where he is?"

"You can do it Link, you were chosen. Fortunately, there is time. All the wonders still stand and Ganondorf is no where to be seen"

"So, what should I do then?"

Zelda looked outside and saw the sun on the western horizon. She stared at it for a moment, before looking back at Link.

"It's getting dark out. Come to see me tomorrow. I'll inform Mihalich that you will be visiting and he'll allow you in the castle"

"Until tomorrow, then". With those words, Link left the castle and began his trek to his house. All the while he was meditating over what had happened in the past twenty-four hours. His whole life was turned upside down. He learned that he would defeat the evil in this land. He learned that an evil man known as Ganondorf would pursue the Triforce at all costs. Link arrived at his house, still thinking about what happened. He made his choice to defend this land, but had he dug his own grave? Only time would tell, he decided. He put the Master Sword up against a corner, and fell into his bed, falling asleep immediately.

That night Link had another dream. This dream was different than his previous one. This dream involved Link fishing at Lake Hylia. He caught a fish on the line, but it wouldn't come up. Try as he may, the fish wouldn't come out of the water. Then the fish swam the other way, and pulled Link into the water headfirst. Link let go of the pole and came up for air, treading water. He looked around and saw that he had been pulled farther than he had imagined; he was in the center of Lake Hylia, far away from land. He began to swim towards the edge, and when he was about half way there, his left shoulder and right leg cramped up, right where he had been hit in battle. He couldn't swim with only one arm and one leg, and soon he was calling for help, but no one answered. Link felt an agonizing pain in his stomach, and was soon underwater, looking up at the water above him. Link felt a suffocating pain in his chest, and woke up with a sweat. He looked outside and saw that it was dawn.

"What could that dream have meant" Link thought to himself.

Link thought about the dream, and it seemed to push his worries about being the savior of the land out of his mind. He did his usual morning routine, and set off to Hyrule Castle. On his way he stopped by Lon Lon Ranch to see Epona, but she was no where to be found. 

"Talon, where's Epona"

"Aye, me boy. Epona, she's in the barn. I just couldn't bring myself to look at her today"

"Why not?"

"Today, I am going to have to kill her"

"KILL HER? WHY?" 

"Aye, you see, Epona doesn't let anyone ride her. She does nothing all day long, and she's costing me too much money to keep"

"Wait, I'll buy her off of you". Link fumbled through his pocket and found his pouch from the king yesterday. "I'll give you one hundred and fifty rupees for her!" 

"I couldn't. It would be a waste of your money. I couldn't let a friend waste all that money"

"I insist. I'll feed her and take care of her"

"Hmmmm. Fine, I'll let you buy her for fifty rupees"

"Ok, that's perfect". Link took fifty rupees out of his pouch and handed them to Talon as he brought the reigns of Epona over to Link. Link grabbed the reigns of Epona and petted her. He hopped on Epona, and much to the surprise of Talon, Epona was tame.

"She likes you, Link".

"Thanks for Epona, Talon. I really owe you one"

'"Think nothing of it" 

Link rode out of Lon Lon Ranch and towards Hyrule Castle. He dismounted Epona when he arrived and tied her to a pole just outside the castle. He approached the gate, and Mihalich allowed him to pass, instructing him that Zelda was in the courtyard. Link went to the courtyard to see Zelda.

"So, this whole saving Hyrule thing, it's really something I am meant to do", Link said to Zelda

"Yes, you are the chosen one", replied Zelda. 

"So how should I begin my..." Link was interrupted as Mihalich came running into the courtyard, panting for breath. 

"Princess Zelda. I just received word from McKay of the Forest. The Gardens of the Forest have been attacked by Ganondorf!"


	7. The Gardens of the Forest

**Chapter 7: The Gardens of the Forest**

Zelda and Link stood in the courtyard in disbelief.

"No, no it can't be" muttered Zelda.

"Yes, it is" replied Mihalich.

Zelda turned to Link.

"Link, you must go immediately to the Gardens of the Forest".

"Right. I guess I'll be leaving now"

Link turned and began to exit the courtyard. Zelda ran after him.

"Wait, Link. There's one more thing"

"Yes, Zelda?"

"Don't die", and with that, Zelda gave Link a kiss on the cheek. Link turned red for a moment, and then replied that he would not die. Link mounted Epona and rode into the market to buy a shield for his journey. Link then rode his house to pick up the Master Sword that he had forgotten earlier. Link then began his journey to the Gardens of the Forest. Link rode as fast as Epona could gallop towards the forest. The journey went by fast; Link was thinking what he would do when he was face to face with Ganondorf. He was worrying whether or not he could match Ganondorf in a fight, worrying for Zelda if he failed. He decided that he mustn't fail, and when he arrived at the Gardens of the Forest, dismounted Epona and tied her to a tree. Link looked around in indifference towards the Gardens.

"These are the Gardens of the Forest?" he thought. "What's so special about these?"

Link spotted an entryway into the Gardens and stepped inside. His jaw dropped in awe as he looked at the inner workings of the Gardens, looking twenty feet below to the floor and seeing three distinct pathways, each surrounded by magnificent looking plants. There were no need for torches; there was a giant hole in the roof, providing sunlight for all of the plants. Link looked around on the cliff that he was on for a way to descend to the floor. He spotted a rope ladder to his left and began to climb down to the bottom, still in awe from the Gardens, and now knowing why it was a wonder. Link walked to the center of the room, and looked at the three paths: left, center, right. Link unsheathed the Master Sword and decided to go to the left path. Along the way he was attacked by strange little creatures that he had never seen before. He blocked their attack with his shield and slashed them easily with the Master Sword. Link continued along the path and exited the main room. Inside this new room, he saw a skeleton sitting in the corner of the plant-filled room, clutching what appeared to be a boomerang. He went over to the skeleton and grabbed the boomerang, thinking that it would prove useful in his quest. As Link put the boomerang in his belt, he heard the door to the chamber slam shut. He looked over and saw a hand over the door. He looked up the arm and saw the body of an old man. Link unsheathed his sword, ready for battle.

"Put that away, you fool", said the man.

"Why? For all I know you could be trying to kill me", replied Link.

"If I wanted to kill you then you would be dead by now", replied the man.

"What's your name?" questioned Link.

"I am McKay of the Forest, Sage of the Gardens of the Forest. My power has been weakened from Ganondorf's attack. I was able to escape death and make it into here. That boomerang you have in your belt is enchanted. It will most certainly aid you. And you, you must be the one that the legends speak of. You, you are the one who shall save this land. But, what is the savior's name?"

"Link"

"An odd name. Anyhow, I believe Ganondorf is still in here somewhere. Find him, Link, and kill him. Don't let him get to the other sages"

"I won't." McKay of the Forest opened the door and allowed Link to exit. Link sheathed his sword and re-entered the main room and looked at the two remaining paths he could take. The center path or the right path. Link chose the right path and walked down it, into a chamber. Link looked around the chamber and saw a strange drawing on the wall. The drawing appeared to be a blueprint of the Gardens. Link gazed upon it and saw that there was only one other possible place Ganondorf could be in the Garden. The center path. Link exited the room, and as he was doing so, was attacked by more of the strange little creatures. Link cut them with ease, and they withered away. Link walked the center path, and entered a large chamber, filled with overgrowth on the walls and part of the ceiling. Link unsheathed his sword and took his shield off of his back and moved around the chamber with caution. He got to the center of the chamber when he heard the entrance to the chamber slam shut.

"McKay, is that you again?"

"That fool? He was an easy battle"

Link turned and saw a tall man of the desert with flaming red hair.

"You, you, you must be Ganondorf"

"No you fool. Do you really think I would waste my time here after I conquered it? This is merely a phantom of me. I, too, know of the legends. I know what I need to do in order to gain the Triforce and ultimate power. I know that you are here to save the world. The only reason I am here is to slow you down"

"Not much of a life"

"Time to die, you fool. Let's see if you really are the hero of legend that has come to save the world." The phantom unsheathed his sword and charged at Link. Link was ready for him, and blocked his blow with his shield. Link slashed at the phantom's body, but missed as the phantom dodged the blow. The phantom then slashed at Link, only to have it blocked by Link's shield. This battle waged on like this for what seemed like hours to Link. Link was now backed against a wall in the chamber, with the phantom raising his sword.

"Some hero"

Link remembered being in this situation when he faced his dark self. Only this time, he had a sword. Link blocked the blow with his sword and cut the phantom across the leg, allowing Link to escape from the wall. Link moved back into the center of the chamber, and fumbled around for the boomerang. Link threw it towards the phantom, but it missed, and circled the chamber.

"Nice throw"

Link was now pacing backwards as the phantom approached him, the boomerang still circling the chamber. Then, the boomerang struck the phantom in the head, causing the phantom to be momentarily distracted. With this moment, Link leapt forward and stabbed the phantom in the stomach. The phantom clutched his stomach and fell backwards, fading into nothingness.

"Very good" said the voice of McKay. "You truly are the hero of legend. Now that I am regaining some of my strength, I shall transport you out of the chamber. I shall remain in here to watch over it." With those words, McKay transported Link outside of the Gardens of the Forest and in front of Epona. Link wondered where Ganondorf would strike next as he untied Epona and rode out of the forest, not knowing where he should go next.


	8. So Many Places, So Little Time

**Chapter 8: So many places, so little time.**

As Link mounted Epona he looked westward at the setting sun. It was at the horizon, and waning. He concluded that there was not much he would be able to accomplish in the dark, so he headed back to his house near Lake Hylia. The words of the sage ran through his mind as he rode to his house. He was wondering where Ganondorf would strike next, and how he would get there fast enough. By the time Link had reached his house the sun had set and the moon was waxing. Link dismounted Epona, tied her to a tree next to his house, and opened the door. He took off his shield and sword, and collapsed into his bed, exhausted from the day's events.

Link awoke groggily the next morning when the rooster crowed. He peered out of his window and saw it was sunrise. Link rose out of bed and grabbed his fishing pole to get his breakfast. As Link was fishing he was contemplating what to do next. He decided it would be best if he saw Zelda next. Link felt a tug on the pole and reeled in the fish easily. He prepared it, cooked it, and ate it. Link went back into his house and grabbed his shield and sword, untied and mounted Epona, and rode for the castle. When Link arrived at the castle Mihalich greeted him as usual, and he went to see Zelda in the castle courtyard, Epona tied to a post outside the castle.

"Link, did you succeed"?" asked Zelda.

"I did and I didn't." replied Link

"Well, what do you mean?"

"I arrived in time to save McKay of the Forest, but I was unable to catch Ganondorf."

"McKay is safe, though, right?"

"Yep. He is in the Gardens as we speak"

Zelda breathed a sigh of relief. "The sages are the only ones standing between Ganondorf and the Triforce. The sages are all that matter currently. So long as they remain alive, the world remains safe".

"About that, I'm having a little issue right now. You see, I have no idea of where to go next."

"Remember Link, you were in this position before. This is how you started your quest."

"So basically what I should do now is get on with my life until I hear anything?"

"Well, you should do a little more than that. Just be on the lookout for anything...funny."

"Right. I won't just have Mihalich come in again and say where Ganondorf has struck. Anyhow, it's still pretty early in the day, and I have a sword or two to make that I have kind of been putting off doing. After all, I still do have to make a living".

"Oh, yea, of course. It is kind of sad though, I was hoping that you and I...well...hoping that you would go on a picnic with me" Zelda said as she pulled a picnic basket out from behind a small bush in the courtyard.

"Well, I could always do it later. I mean...it's not like it is that urgent or anything. I still have a couple of days to do it."

"I was hoping you'd say that" said Zelda, as she smiled. Link and Zelda walked hand in hand, with Link carrying the basket, out of the castle. They got on Epona and rode Epona to the top of a small hill, Zelda's arms around Link's waist. Link leaned his sword and shield against a lone tree as they sat under it and opened the basket and began to eat their lunch. They ate without a word spoken between them, only staring dreamily into each other's eyes. Time seemed to stand still as he ate, as if nothing else in the world mattered. When they finished, they kept staring into each other's eyes. Then Link leaned forward a little, as did Zelda, and they closed their eyes and shared their first kiss. When they stopped kissing, they stared into each other's eyes again.

"That was incredible" said Zelda. "That was the first time I've ever kissed anyone"

"It was my first time too. And I'm glad it was with you"

Zelda blushed at this. She saw that the sun was almost setting, and judged it to be about five in the afternoon.

"It's getting to be dinner time, Link" said Zelda. "I should really be getting back to the castle."

"I'll accompany you back to the castle" replied Link. They fed the remaining food to Epona and mounted her. They rode to the castle, and Zelda dismounted Epona when they reached the castle gates. Link and Zelda said goodbye to each other, and Link rode back to his house. For the first time in a while, Link did not have any worries on his mind as he traveled, thinking only about how wonderful Zelda was. Link got to his house, tied Epona to the tree, and went into his house. He undressed, and dreamily fell into his bed, still thinking about how wonderful Zelda was.

Several days had passed since then, and Link went about his normal routine, making swords and delivering them. Link finished working on a sword on particular afternoon and looked outside. He saw it was noontime and he decided he had enough time to make his delivery to Kakariko Village. He mounted Epona, Master Sword, shield, and boomerang equipped, and sword to be delivered in a sheath at Link's side. When Link arrived at Kakariko Village, the villagers were buzzing. Link looked for the person to whom he was going to make a delivery, and gave it to him. The man handed him thirty rupees, and Link asked him why everyone was buzzing about.

"You know the volcano", the villager asked?

"Yes...why, what happened?"

"Well, you know how the volcano has not erupted in a while?"

"Yes"

"Well, it just erupted. Nothing too big, but still, surprising nonetheless. Nothing really happens here, so it is all that everyone has been talking about."

Link thought that this surely qualified as something funny. He knew that the Cave in the Volcano was in this volcano. He thought that he might be able to save the Sage if he left immediately. And maybe, just maybe, he would be able to catch Ganondorf in his mad quest for the power of the Triforce.

"Thanks, that's all I need to know. Say, can you look after my horse, Epona for a bit?"

"Why sure, Link. After all, this sword you gave me is worth way more than thirty rupees. It is the least I could do for you"

"Thanks" Link began to ascend the path to the Cave in the Volcano. Link did not care what time it was, all he knew was that the Sage was in trouble. And that he was the only one who would be able to save him. It took roughly an hour for Link to reach the cave. He stood outside of it, took a deep breath, and walked in, prepared for anything.


	9. The Cave in the Volcano

**Chapter 9: The Cave in the Volcano**

Link walked in and ran his hand against cave wall. It was pitch black inside. Link turned around and promptly walked out of the cave. He looked around and saw a thick wooden stick. He grabbed it, and walked around the volcano area until he was right near the lava. He reached down to dip the stick into the lava but pulled is arm back as the lava moved, nearly burning his hand.

"Not now" though Link.

Link reached down again and dipped the stick into the lava, holding onto a wall for balance with his other hand. The heat of the lava caused him to sweat along his brow. He could not wipe it or he would fall into the lava. He withdrew the stick from the lava and it was alight. He set his balance, and wiped his brow. He made his way back to the cave, this time with a means of seeing. He re-entered the cave, still running his hand against the cave wall. After about 100 feet, he entered a large circular room. He looked around with his makeshift light and saw that there were unlit torches all around. He went around the room lighting torches. When he reached the final torch, he noticed an odd wire-type-object attached to the torch. He lit the torch, and the fire carried along the wire, growing more intense at various spots along the wire. Link blew out his makeshift light and threw it near the torch. He looked around the now lit room and saw that there were drawings all over the cave walls. He looked closer and saw there were captions below some of the drawings. One such drawing featured a warrior raising his sword against a dragon. Below it was written:

"Let the memory of the brave warrior Reldeif who, in this very room sacrificed his life to seal away the evil dragon and to help keep the world safe live on through the ages".

Link ran his hand across the writing taking it all in. He hoped he would not have to give his life like Reldeif to save the world. He moved on through the cave following the lit wire. It led him to a room where the wire split into two directions. Link went left and followed the wire. It led him to another room where the wire split off into two more directions. Link went left again, and this time the wire split off into three directions. Link went left and followed the wire into an empty room, with only a few arrows inside it. Link grabbed the arrows and backtracked to the previous room. Of the two remaining paths, Link chose the right one. Link followed it into an empty room. Angered slightly and the loss of time, Link backtracked and followed the remaining path. It led him to a room filled with large spider creatures. Link unsheathed his sword and swiped at the creatures. The Master Sword bounced off of their thick exoskeletons. They began to move closer to Link. Link moved around, and was backtracking to avoid the poisonous-looking spiders. Link found his back against a wall and in desperation threw his boomerang. It cut the spiders from their webs, and they fell to the ground revealing their soft underbelly. He took the opportunity to stab the spiders, and watched them die. Link exited the room, sweating from his recent battle. He backtracked to the previous room where the wire had split off into two directions. He chose the remaining path and followed it into a room where it split into two more directions.

"Not again" Link thought.

Link looked at the two paths. He chose the right path and followed it into an empty room, containing only a quiver for arrows.

"At least I have something to carry these arrows" Link thought. Link backtracked to the previous room and took the left path, following it into a room that contained an old man holding a bow and arrow

"Leave your money or your life" the old man said.

"What?" Link asked.

"Leave your money or your life" the old man repeated. This time he pulled the arrow against the bow, aiming it straight at Lin

"In that case I choose my money. Just don't kill me." Link took out his pouch of rupees and offered it to the old man.

"Keep it. I always love playing that joke on anyone foolish enough to come into these caves." the old man said, grinning, while a tear of laughter moved down his cheek.

"Ha ha very funny" Link replied sarcastically. "Look, I'd love to stay and chat, but I am very busy at the moment trying to track down..."

"Ganondorf" the old man interrupted. Link looked a little surprised at the old man, but the old man continued anyway. "Yes, I know all about you, Link. I know you are on a quest to save the land, and that you are the chosen one."

"You know my name, but I don't know yours" Link replied

"My name, is Sekim" replied the old man. "And you, you need to defeat the dragon. The dragon that was freed in the eruption. There's a reason this volcano lies dormant. It is the very seal on the dragon. Yes, I know you are confused, you thought Reldeif sealed away the dragon; you read it on the wall. Who do you think wrote that?"

"You?"

"Yep. I was but a mere adolescent when he did it, and am still amazed today the sacrifice he was willing to accept to do it. But he was only able to do it with this, his bow."

Sekim presented the bow to Link who took it graciously. He slung it over his back.

"Go on, Link, save this cave, and the world". With Sekim's parting words, Link backtracked the path to the original splitting of the wire. He took the reaming path and followed the twisty-turny path for about fifty feet. Finally, he emerged in a large circular room, where the wire went along the wall and connected to several torches around the room. Link looked dead ahead and saw that there was a wall, flanked by staircases. On the next platform at the top the stairs, there were five paths, illuminated by the wires.

"How far does this cave go on?" Link thought. Link climbed the stairs and looked at each of the paths. Link took the leftmost path, and followed it only to find a dead-end. Link backtracked and took the center-left path of the five, only to find yet another dead end. Link backtracked, and looked at the remaining three paths. Link thought back to a situation like this that he was in earlier, faced with three paths. Link knew he had to fight the dragon. Earlier, the center path led him to a room full of monsters. He remembered that it was the center path of the three that led him to that. He took the center path of the remaining three paths and followed it into a large room with lava in the center. Link climbed down to the room, and looked around. Seeing nothing, he began to climb back up to backtrack, when suddenly a large dragon swooped down at Link.

Link fell off of the ledge and landed awkwardly on his ankle, twisting it in the process. Link grabbed his ankle in pain, and glared at the dragon to see that it was coming closer. Link tried to move but was in too much pain. He couldn't get out of the way in time, and the dragon swooped down and smashed Link's other ankle. Link screamed out in pain, as now one of his ankles was twisted and the other broken. The dragon was circling the ceiling of the room, taking its time to line up one more shot at Link. It stopped circling and moved swiftly towards Link. Link could not move in time and was only able to take out his shield and crouch behind it. Link crouched behind the shield and the dragon crashed against it, sending Link crashing against a wall. The dragon then circled the room, gaining momentum to deliver the final blow. Dazed, Link crawled out of the way at the last second and the dragon bashed its head against the wall. Link took this opportunity to get to the wall and stand up. He winced in pain as the weight of his body was on his ankles. The dragon moved by Link, barely missing him. Link took out the Master Sword and stabbed the dragon, only to have it be ineffective, unable to pierce the thick skin of the dragon. Link tried this again as the dragon moved by, only to lose the Master Sword as it stuck into the dragon. The dragon seemed unaffected. Link then remembered what Sekim said, and took Reldeif's bow off of his back. He took an arrow out of the quiver and aimed it at the recovering dragon. He fired it and it pierced the dragon's thick skin. The dragon let out a breath of fire aimed at Link. Link took his shield off of his back and blocked the fire. The heat from the fire caused Link to sweat along his brow and arms. He wiped his brow, and again took aim at the dragon. He aimed at the dragon's head, knowing he must finish the battle quick or he would pass out from the pain in his ankles. As he let it go, the arrow slipped in his now sweaty fingers and missed the dragon by a foot. Link wiped his hand on his tunic and took another arrow. The dragon was coming at Link, and Link aimed his arrow at the dragon. Link let it fire, and hit the dragon in the nose. He then jumped out of the way as the dragon crashed into the wall. Link watched as the dragon circled the room. Link reached back into his quiver and felt that he had only one arrow left. He knew he had to make this one count. He slowly picked himself up and leaned against a wall, and took aim at the dragon. The dragon made its move at Link, coming straight at him. Link fired the arrow when the dragon was about five feet away from Link, piercing the dragon in the head, and causing it to fall at Link's feet. Link took the Master Sword out of its side. Link then limped towards the entrance of the room, only to hear the unmistakable sound of the dragon getting up. Link glanced over and saw that the dragon was again circling the room. Link panicked, knowing he was out of arrows. He looked around and saw one arrow on the ground. He picked it up and took aim at the dragon, knowing that this was his last chance. He let it fire, and it pierced the dragon in the head, causing it to fall into the pool of lava in the center of the room. Link smiled, knowing he had defeated the beast. He then collapsed and went unconscious from all of the pain that he had endured in his ankles during the battle, falling back onto the ground.


	10. Aftermath, a Past Revealed

**Chapter 10: Aftermath, a past revealed**

Link awoke with a sweat inside the cave. He looked around and saw a few lights hanging from the ceiling of the cave, his equipment in a corner, and felt the hard ground beneath him. He felt his ankles to find that they were bandaged. Link tried to get up to walk, but was too weak. He lay back down and thought about his previous battle, how intense it was, how close he was to dying. Sekim entered the room with a pot of water, and placed it down beside the entrance to the room.

"Glad to see you are awake" Sekim said.

"Wait...how did you know? I'm lying down" Link replied, slightly puzzled. "You always amaze me on how much you know, Sekim."

"I am a Sage after all" Sekim replied "But I am glad to see you are awake. I was beginning to think you would never wake up. You took quite a beating, Link. But now the dragon is dead and can never return."

"That's good," replied Link. "But my ankles, I know you bandaged them. Will they heal quickly?"

"They will heal in time. Right now it is important that you stay off of your feet and let them rest"

"Okay. You, as a sage, know a lot, right?"

"Yes, I do"

"Well, I've been on the journey for a bit now, trying to find this man named Ganondorf. I've been wondering why Ganondorf. I mean, if there really is the Triforce hidden, and it is accessible by such a method, why didn't anyone else do it already?"

"Link, it is time you knew about Ganondorf. Ganondorf is the King of the Gerudos." began Sekim.

"Legend has it that there is one male born every one hundred years to the race, and that he will lead the race. I've never believed it to that extent, I do believe that one male born every so often becomes the leader. Ganondorf became ruler of the Gerudos at the proper age of eighteen. His early years were marked by rebellions, which he quelled easily. The next few years were the Golden Age of the Gerudos. There was much peace and prosperity among the Gerudos, and a rise in culture that had not been seen in as many as the previous twenty male rulers. The Gerudos thought this would last forever, but they were wrong. On one fateful evening, a wicked wind swept into the valley, carrying with it disease. This disease killed many Gerudo women. Ganondorf was horrified. He as ruler would not let this stand. He searched everywhere for a cure, but as fate would have it he was unsuccessful. He was losing all hope. He then read many Gerudo manuscripts in his search for a cure, and one night read about the unlimited power of the Triforce in one of them. He marveled at the awesome power, and became obsessed with the power of the Triforce, wanting to obtain it, needing to obtain it. It consumed his very soul, and his desire would turn him to darkness. He forgot about his dying people and left them for dead one night, leaving the valley on his black steed."

"Over the next few years, he scoured the land for this power, but found nothing. He rode back into the valley, to reread the manuscript about the Triforce. He was not greeted kindly by the Gerudo women, who were unthankful to say the least about his return. They blocked his way. Ganondorf had no time for this, and slaughtered them on the spot. He put their dead bodies for every Gerudo to see, to serve as a warning to anyone that would oppose him. He stayed in the library for seven days searching for the manuscript, staying up all night and reading all day. He finally found the Triforce manuscript. It only revealed that one pure of heart could find the Triforce, only in dire times in order to save the land. Angered by this, Ganondorf tore up the manuscript and quickly left Gerudo Valley, abandoning his people yet a second time. He searched to the ends of the earth, and finally found how to uncover the Triforce. He found a blind man an island, who informed him that the only way to get the Triforce was to cause enough chaos the Seven Wonders of the World to destroy the barrier to the Sacred Realm, the resting place of the Triforce. Ganondorf then executed the old man so that no other man may know how to get the power. And since then he has been to here and the Gardens of the Forest."

Link stared at the ground after hearing Ganondorf's story, unable to comprehend the evils that humanity could sink to in order to achieve their own ends. Link now had a new resolve, wanting to prevent Ganondorf for succeeding in his twisted goal, and wanting to avenge the lives of everyone Ganondorf killed in his quest for power.

"I can't let him get it" Link said, still staring at the ground

"We are counting on you, Link. Drink up and get some rest. After that battle you need a lot"

Sekim offered Link the pot and Link took a big sip from it and lay back down. Link turned to one side and put an arm under his head to sleep. He dozed off and Sekim sat in a corner, resting. Link spent a week in the Cave of the Volcano, recovering from his injuries. Link was finally able to walk on his own. Link gathered his gear and Sekim helped Link descend the volcano, making sure that Link would not fall. When Link got to the bottom he went to go see the man with his horse Epona. Link thanked the man profusely and apologized for being gone so long, but the man reassured Link that there was no reason to be worried, and in fact, he enjoyed taking care of Epona. Link mounted Epona and rode off to his house. He arrived and immediately put his gear in a corner of his house. He took his fishing rod and went fishing, catching a fish within an hour. Link prepped the fish and ate it, glad to eat fish again.

He went to sleep, and planned on seeing Zelda the next day. That night Link had a nightmare of witnessing Ganondorf's cruel actions to the Gerudos, and not being able to do anything about it. He awoke with a sweat, and looked outside to see that it was still night. He decided to go wash his face in the lake and clear his head. When he stepped outside, he noticed something odd. He couldn't put his finger on it quite yet, but continued to walk nonetheless. He got to lake and washed his face, and then realized what was wrong. The eternal light atop the Lighthouse on the Lake was out. This had never happened before, and Link knew something was not right. He ran as fast as he could back to his house, still feeling a little pain in his ankles. He got dressed in his tunic, grabbed his gear, and ran back to Lake Hylia. He made his way around the perimeter of the lake to Lighthouse. He circled the Lighthouse, and found the entrance. He took a deep breath, and entered the Lighthouse.


	11. The Lighthouse on the Lake

**Chapter 11: The Lighthouse on the Lake**

Link looked up in the lighthouse and saw that there were three additional floors to the one he was one, with sparse walkways between doorways, as well as beams spanning the diameter of the lighthouse. Link was many torches lining the walls. Link looked around the ground floor and saw two doorways: one to his left, and one to his right. Link went left and found a grappling hook in the room. Figuring it would come in handy; he picked it up and exited the small room. Link crossed the room and entered the other doorway, to find nothing. Link went back to the main room, and was stumped on what to do. He looked up and spotted a beam not too far up. He swung the grappling hook, and got it to twist around the beam; Link pulled himself up and jumped into a doorway. Inside, he found a teenager.

"Ahhh, Link, I have been awaiting for your arrival", said the teenager

"You are the sage?" asked Link

"Indeed I am. My name is Gavas. Don't be fooled by my appearance. Although I may look young, I am actually quite old."

"Interesting. How do you do it?"

"That is my secret. But I am glad you are here, an evil man named Ganondorf has descended upon this place. I fought him, and was doing quite well until I was jumped from behind...".

"Wait, Ganondorf has a partner?" interrupted Link

"Well, I'd guess so." replied Gavas. "As I was saying, I was knocked unconscious and dropped in here. "

"Are they still here?"

"As far as I know."

"Hopefully I can stop him here and now".

"Good luck, Link. Don't do anything stupid, remember, there are two of them".

With those words, Link stood at the edge of the doorway and saw a room dead across from him. Link jumped on top of the beam and then jumped across to the room. Link tumbled in and as immediately attacked by huge bat-like creatures. Link unsheathed the Master Sword, and swung at them, but hit nothing but air. A bat landed and bit Link in the right arm, and Link winced in pain. Link grabbed the bat, and smashed it against the wall. Link then used his boomerang to kill the other bats. Link felt his right arm go numb from the bite.

"Bats fangs are bad. Have to remember that" thought Link. Link sheathed his sword and put away his boomerang, and jumped back to the beam. He tossed his grappling hook up, and caught it on another beam. Link then realized it would be nearly impossible to pull himself up with only one working arm. Link then pulled the grappling hook, and fortunately came untwisted from the beam. Link tied one end of the rope around his waist. He then tied the hook to an arrow, and shot the arrow at another beam. Link was carried up, but was now dangling from the beam. Link pulled himself up onto the beam with his left arm, and it was a short distance due to his idea of shooting himself up. He stood on top of the beam and looked at four different doors. Link jumped towards the left one, and landed safely inside. Link looked and saw that it was a passage.

He followed the passage way, and found a room filled with more bats. Link stood at the doorway and withdrew his bow, learning from his previous mistake of getting too close. Link fired a flurry of arrows and killed most of the bats. One bat flew straight at Link and landed on his left arm. As it was about to sink its fangs into the arm, Link shook it, and the bat landed on a torch. The bat was now on fire, still flying towards Link. It crashed into Link and set his tunic a flame. Link put out the flames, but gave the bat enough time to land a bite on his right arm and set it on fire at the same time. Link winced in pain, and put out the fire as the bat circled the room. Link took out his boomerang and fired it at the bat, killing it instantaneously. Link exited the room and continued along the passageway, finding a door that led back to the central room. He looked out and saw another doorway across from him. Link used his grappling hook to swing across into the room. Inside, he found a staircase that led to the fourth floor. On the fourth floor, Link saw a door to his left, but there were no beams for him to use. He looked to his right and saw a small ledge that want all the way to the other door. Link walked on this ledge and slipped, catching the ledge with his left arm. Link then tired with all his might to move his right arm, but to no avail. So he pulled up his legs and moved inch by inch around the room, using his feet for balance against the wall. Link was in extreme pain from the pressure on his ankles. He finally reached the doorway, and was stuck. He had no idea how to get up. Link lifted his right leg but could not get it over the threshold of the doorway. Link then saw a beam inside the doorway. He had his grappling hook with easy access. Only, he had one arm. He let go of the ledge, and immediately grabbed the grappling hook. Link swung it up, and it caught the beam. Link swung into the wall, and used the wall to pull himself up. Link entered the room and saw staircase.

Link climbed the case, and found himself at the top of the lighthouse. The eternal flame in the center was out, and the darkness of light filled the room. Link walked around the circular pathway around the spot for the flame, using the railing at the circumference of the top for a guide, and found nothing. Disappointed, he made his way back to the staircase and from twenty feet away saw a tall, dark-haired man standing in the doorway.

"Gavas, is that you?"

"That sage? He tried to defeat Ganondorf, that fool. It was only because Ganondorf was so busy that he let him live. I would have killed him."

"And what is your name?"

"My name is Dasem. I am a mercenary hired by Ganondorf to help him sack this place. I was also paid to stay here and kill you"

"You don't have to kill me. Together, we can fight Ganondorf"

"You really are a fool. You can't fight Ganondorf. I'm on his side because when he takes over the world, I will be safe. Don't try convincing me otherwise, it will only prolong your death. Well then, I do have some honor, despite what you might think. Unsheathe your sword; hold it against mine, and five paces."

"Agreed".

They held their respective blades against each other, and counted off. Upon five, Dasem turned around and charged at Link. Link dodged, and back paced around the pathway. Dasem followed him slowly around the room. Link stopped, and swung the Master Sword. Dasem easily blocked it, and then charged at Link. Link dodged, and tried to move his right arm but it was still numb.

"Awww, what's the matter? Only have on arm? Don't you know keesee have poisonous fangs? Lucky for me that it is slow acting. It will give me plenty of time to kill you before the poison spreads to your heart."

Link back paced again, waiting for the right moment to charge. Link felt the railing behind him. Dasem, taking notice of Link's position, charged at Link. Link could not duck and was cut across the chest. Link's tunic was cut, but Link was safe. Dasem, angered that he did not kill Link, went back to charge at Link. He swung his sword, and Link blocked it with the Master Sword. The two pushed their blades against each other, trying to gain the upper hand. Link was getting closer and closer to Dasem with the Master Sword. Dasem, with his free hand, took another sword out of a sheath and swung it at Link's head. Link ducked just in time.

"I thought you said you had honor"

"I also value my life"

Dasem swung both blades wildly at Link. Link managed to knock one out his hand with his sword. Link and Dasem then swung with all their might at their opponent, causing a vibration to go down each person's arm. The swords dropped on the floor, and Dasem charged at Link, punching him alternating lefts and rights. Dasem trapped Link along the railing, and moved his hands to Link's throat. Link was bent over backwards against the railing, and fading fast. He was too far away from the Master Sword to get it. He grabbed Dasem's throat in an attempt to get him to release him, but soon had to let to go take some of the pressure of his throat. Link, realizing that he had few moments left, used his legs to push himself up over the railing, taking Dasem with him. He kicked Dasem in the gut, causing him to let go and fall towards the earth. Dasem crashed into rocks, breaking his body, killing him instantly. Link had one shot for saving his life. He took out his grappling hook, and swung it. It barely caught on the railing. Link then swung towards the Lighthouse, and managed to stop himself with his feet from crashing face first against the building. Link then began his long, slow, tedious climb up the side of the building.


	12. Race Against the Clock

**Chapter 12: Race against the clock  
**  
The sun was just coming up. Down on the shores of Lake Hylia laid Dasem's dead and broken body, gradually moving into the lake with the tide. Link hung from his grappling hook by one hand, and couldn't move his other arm. Link managed to inch his way up the lighthouse wall by wrapping his left arm around the rope and using it for leverage to climb up. When he reached the railing of the lighthouse, the rising sun in the east was well above the horizon, and Dasem's body was no longer able to be seen. At the top, Gavas helped pull Link over the railing, much to the surprise of Link.

"Where did you come from" asked Link.

"Well, I managed to get out of the room I was trapped in, and I began a long ascent to the top from a combination of jumps," Gavas smugly replied.

"That would explain it. I have a quick question"

"Yes?"

"Would you be able to heal me?"

"How so?"

"I was bitten by a keesee in the Lighthouse"

"That is not good. Unfortunately, I am not able to, and I do not have an antidote. But, I do know someone who does. The only problem is that he lives very far from here, and if you do not get there before sunset, then you will die. His name is Denpolent, and he lives in the desert"

"Damn. Thank you for all of your help, Gavas. Now, I must be going. Ummm...what's the fastest way down?"

"I will transport you there".

A blue crystal surrounded Link's body, and moved him down to the base of the Lighthouse. Link was safe on the ground, and the blue crystal disappeared.

"Good luck, Link. And may the way of the hero guide you on your quest". Yelled Gavas

Link was already in a dead sprint for his house to get Epona. He raised his left arm in recognition of what Gavas said, and continued running. Link arrived at his house panting, but he knew that he had no time to catch his breath. He untied Epona, and mounted her. Epona galloped as fast as she could in the direction of the desert. Link looked back at the rising sun. It was nearly noon, and he wasn't even at the desert yet. Link began to worry, he didn't know where in the desert Denpolent was. Epona finally reached the desert. The sun was waning, much to the disappointment of Link. The two continued on into the desert, at a much slower pace because the sand made it difficult for Epona to gallop. Link yelled out for Denpolent, but no answer came back. Link could not feel his right leg anymore, and he knew the poison was spreading, and he did not have much time. Link continued calling, and still could not find Denpolent. A sandstorm began to kick up, but Link continued, knowing that there was not much time. The sandstorm grew stronger, and knocked Link off of Epona, and caused Epona to gallop as fast as she could away. Link was knocked unconscious by the fall, having hit his head on a stray rock.

The sand continued blowing and began to cover the unconscious body of Link. When Link awoke, his entire body was covered in sand. He got up, and fell down again, his right leg not being able to support any weight since it began to get numb before the storm. Link slowly picked himself up, and looked around for Epona. When he could not see her, he yelled for her, but to no avail. Link was alone in the desert, having no clue where his horse was, or where the witchdoctor was. He looked at the sun, and it was almost touching the horizon. Link limped towards the sun, desperately hoping against hope that he would find a way. Link continued walking towards the sun, but was not able to see much, looking directly into the sun. The sun was half-way set when Link's left leg gave out. He now could not walk, and his time was almost up. Link pulled himself along the ground with his left arm, still hoping he could find Denpolent. The lack of sleep from the previous night, his fight with Dasem, his lack of food during the day now took a toll on Link. His body was frail, and his mind was weak. He saw not too far from where he was a building. He crawled towards it, finally reaching it when only a quarter of the sun was left on the horizon. He went out to touch it, but felt nothing. Puzzled, Link tried to touch it again, but felt nothing. He had crawled towards a mirage.

Link looked at the sun, and saw his time was almost up. He was nowhere near a building, and only a small cave lay about one hundred feet away. He crawled towards it, hoping this would be it, being his last chance. He was now in a race against time, to reach the cave before the sun set. Link was determined to make it before the sun set, even if he only could feel one limb. He was now ten feet away, with only a few minutes of life left. He crawled, more determined than ever. He reached the cave with only a small ray of sunlight appearing on the horizon. Link reached out to enter, and collapsed at the entrance of the cave and lost consciousness. His arm was stretched out towards the entrance of the cave.

A man came upon the body within seconds, with a goblet in hand. He looked at the sun, seeing he had only seconds left of day. He knelt down turned over Link's unconscious body, and picked his head up, leaning it against his thigh in an effort to elevate it. He opened Link's mouth with his hand, and tilted the goblet, allowing the liquid to fall into Link's body. The sun was now set and the moon arose in the east. The man wondered if he had been in time to save Link. The night continued on, with no sign of life from Link. Epona emerged from the darkness of the cave, and nudged Link. Link remained unconscious.

"Epona, I don't know if he is going to make it. I just don't know", said Denpolent, looking worried. He moved Link's head off of his lap, and let him lay on the sand in the cave. The moon continued moving across the night sky, with Denpolent and Epona still watching Link anxiously. The moon was waning, with still no signs of life of Link. The moon set on the horizon, and the sun arose in the east. Rays of sunlight entered the cave, and moved across the face of Link. Link began to move, much to the delight of Denpolent and Epona. Link opened his eyes, and looked around.

"I...I am alive?" asked Link, in disbelief.

"Yes, you are. Praise the Goddesses that you are. My name is Denpolent, and I saved you."

"Denpolent the witchdoctor? I didn't think I would ever find you"

"You wouldn't have. Your horse came to my hut, and I knew you were in trouble. I rode her and looked around for you, but found nothing. I came into this cave and hoped that you would find this easier. Lucky that you did"

"I'm just thankful to be alive. Is there anyway I can thank you?"

"Fulfill your destiny and save this land from Ganondorf"

"You know him"

"Heh. It was HIM; it was GANONDORF who destroyed my hut when I refused to give him a mind-control potion. I hope he suffers when he dies, he deserves it more than anyone who has ever lived".

Link was surprised at how far the legend had spread.

"I will fulfill my destiny. But I have no idea where he is, unfortunately. I will go out now and search now for him. The closest wonder from here is the...Temple in the Desert? Yea, I think it is. Where can I find it?"

"Heh. You can't find it right now. The sun will conceal it. Wait until after high noon. Then you can..."

A loud explosion interrupted Denpolent, followed by another loud explosion. Denpolent and Link looked at each other, knowing what happened. The Temple in the Desert had been attacked by Ganondorf. The day was still early. Link had to sit in the cave and wait, wait for time to pass to find the Temple. Thoughts raced around Link's head, wondering whether or not he'd be too late, wondering how much damage Ganondorf could do in that time. He wondered what other creatures would be awaiting him, who Ganondorf would hire to put in the Temple. Link knew one thing, that no matter what, he had to get there as soon as he could. Link looked outside of the cave at the rising sun, and glared at it, willing in vain it to get to high noon faster. He sat against the cave wall, angered at how slow the sun was at rising on this day.


	13. The Temple in the Desert

**Chapter 13: The Temple in the Desert**

Link waited for the sun. And waited. With each passing moment he grew more anxious. His heartbeat grew louder and louder, with each beat a new thought came to behind. THUMP, Is the Sage alright? THUMP how much damage could Ganondorf do in the coming hours? THUMP I wonder how Zelda is doing THUMP She's so pretty THUMP No...get in the mindset for going to save the sage THUMP I can't take this anymore. Link stood up suddenly and moved towards the cave entrance.

"Where are you going?" asked Denpolent.

"I can't take this waiting anymore", replied Link. "Ganondorf could be destroying the temple and the sage as we speak. I have to try and stop him here and now before he goes on to do anymore damage."

"But you won't be able to find the temple, it's impossible without the high sun", cautioned Denpolent.

"I don't care. Too much is at risk. Impossible is nothing more than a perception of the mind not wanting to overcome something. I've done a lot these past couple of weeks, Denpolent. I've fought a dragon on broken ankles, hell, they still hurt. But I am going out there to find the Temple, and nothing is going to stop me".

"Good luck to you then. You'll need it"

Link walked out of the cave and looked around. Link walked quickly to his right, figuring he would have seen the Temple on the way in to the desert. The rising sun beat down on the back of Link. Link's pace slowed down to a slow walk as he became fatigued. A sandstorm began to kick up ahead of Link. Link covered his mouth and nose with his left arm, and continued on. The sandstorm was now blowing directly at Link, but Link, more determined than ever, pushed through. Link saw a signpost in the distance and ran to it. He got to it and read it, panting for breath.

"Temple: West - "

Link went to lean against the signpost to catch his breath for a moment. Link fell onto to the sand, and realized it was a mirage. Angered but not spurned, he continued further into the desert. The sun was almost at noon now. Link took no notice, and continued in vain to find the temple. Finally, the sun reached noon. The Temple appeared out of the haze of the desert, and Link ran towards it. Link ran up the steps and entered the temple. Link looked up and saw that the temple had no roof, but high walls. It had two additional stories to it, and a giant pillar in the center of the main room.

Link wandered around in the main room, and entered the first door he saw. He found some keesee in the room. Link took out his shield and guarded his body as he unsheathed his sword, remembering what had happened to him before. The keesee flew at Link, and bounced off of Link's shield. Link took this opportunity to slice each keesee on the ground. Link noticed something odd in this room. This room had a ceiling, unlike the main room. Link exited the room and continued circling the perimeter of the room. Link came upon a doorway and entered into a dimly lit room. Link looked up and saw that it, too, had a ceiling, and that the pillar from the main room was blocking any light entering the doorway. Link reached the back wall of the room and heard the door shut. It was now pitch black. Link unsheathed his sword and readied himself for battle. He heard footsteps moving to his left. Link slowly and silently moved towards the sound, drawing his sword back. The sound stopped and he reached his sword all the way back. He moved it downward as a torch was lit. He saw a bearded man, who saw the blade coming towards his head. The man ducked at the last moment, causing the Master Sword to hit the wall and send sparks everywhere. The bearded man backed up, looking worried.

"Woah, woah, woah. I'm not your enemy here, Link." said the old man.

"And you are?" asked Link.

"My name is Norclas. I am the Sage of this Temple."

"Ok. Oh. Ummm... sorry about trying to kill you."

"You were scared. Being in a dark room and on a quest like you are, anyone would have done that. I can tell that you are in a hurry so I'll be brief. I came in here to hide from that thing that Ganondorf unleashed. The great beast of this temple, to answer what you're question would be. But before you continue on in this temple, there is something that you will need to pass. Take this" Norclas presented Link with a mirror shield. "You will need it to continue on in the temple.

"Thank you. You'll be safe in here?"

"Don't worry about me. Go on, and defeat the beast that is now on the pillar".

Link opened the door, and walked around the main room to the remaining doorway. It had a weird symbol on it; similar to the one Link had seen when Norclas presented the mirror shield to him. Link took the shield off of his back and looked for a sunbeam. He found one, and as he was about to reflect it, a shadow and reflected it back onto the door. The doorway pushed back and slid to the left. Link looked in and saw a stairway. Link climbed the stairs and found himself on the second floor of the Temple. There was a wide walkway around the perimeter, and the large pillar still stood in the center, with a gap between the walkway and the pillar. Link walked around the walkway and entered the first door he found. He found that this room also had a ceiling, and came to the conclusion that each side room had a ceiling. Link found nothing in this room. He went to leave when the door slammed shut. He heard a noise, but thought less of it when he noticed that there was a small gap between the door and the wall, which let sun fall into the room. Link used his mirror shield to look around to find the source of the noise and find that it was the walls, which had spikes protruding from them. They were moving closer and closer together. Link panicked, knowing his time was running short. He decided his only chance was to break down the door. He rammed it repeatedly with his shoulder, but to no avail. The walls were closer, and his only thought didn't work. He came up with a new plan, and stuck the Master Sword in the gap. He moved it in between the door and the wall, hoping to open the door. He jiggled it back and forth, slowly but surely moving the door. He heard the spikes getting closer. He felt one against his left leg, and moved it back behind his body. The door was almost open enough for him to fit through.

"Just a little more" he thought.

He felt a spike against his arm right below his shoulder. It pierced his skin and caused blood to poor down his left arm. He finally opened the door. He dived through it, just as the spikes closed against each other. Link grabbed his right shoulder, now feeling the pain. He ripped off his left sleeve, and tied it around the wound. He continued on, moving around the second floor. He found another doorway with a symbol on it, and he reflected a sunbeam at it. The door opened, and Link entered to find an empty room. He went back, and found another door with a symbol on it. He opened it using his shield, and found nothing. Link came to the last door on the second floor, which also had a symbol on it. Link opened it with the shield, and it revealed a staircase. Link went up, and found himself on the third floor. There was a walkway surrounding the perimeter, and the walls ended ten feet above Link's head. Link saw that there were designs on the pillar, and found that it was an altar. He looked at the flat surface of the altar and saw the great beast of the temple. Link's jaw dropped in awe at the sight of the giant scorpion. The scorpion saw Link, and moved to the edge of the altar, trying in vain to reach Link with its claws. Link moved along the walkway, and the scorpion mimicked his movements. Link knew he couldn't jump across; the scorpion would get him immediately. He took off his bow and fired an arrow at it, but it bounced off of its skin. Link then took off his shield and reflected a sunbeam at the scorpion. Link caught it right in the eyes, blinding it temporarily. Link took this opportunity to jump the gap, and get face to face with the scorpion. 

Link attempted to slice the scorpion, but his sword bounced off the skin. The scorpion then swung his giant tail at Link, knocking Link off of the altar and crashing against the wall. Link got up, and blinded the scorpion again. He jumped the gap, now knowing to avoid the tail. He tried again to pierce the skin of the scorpion, but with no luck. The tail swung at Link, who attempted to jump the tail. His feet were caught by the tail, causing him to flip sideways in mid air. Link landed against the altar, and slammed his head against the altar. Link became dazed, and his vision blurred. The scorpion inched closer and closer to Link. It raised its tail preparing to kill Link. The tail came down, Link unaware of where he was. The tail was a mere foot away from Link when it was deflected by an arrow, launched by Norclas.

"Get up Link!"

The scorpion re-raised its tail, attempting to kill Link again. Link now became fully aware of what was going on. He could not get to his shield so he grabbed his sword. He held it in his left hand and the tip in his right hand, holding it above his body. The tail bounced off of the Master Sword, which gave Link the opportunity to roll under the scorpion. Link stabbed its underbelly, and blood poured from the wound. Link rolled out from under the scorpion. The scorpion was still standing strong. Link dodged a tail swipe, and managed to roll under the scorpion again, and stab it. The scorpion stumbled a little, and Link rolled under. As he got up the scorpion grabbed him in his giant claw. Link felt pain in his injured left shoulder as the claw was wrapped right on the wound. Link found it harder and harder to breath as the life was being squeezed out of him. The scorpion raised its tail, trying again to kill Link. Link managed to free his right arm. He grabbed his sword. Link was a lefty, and he had never fought righty, but he was desperate. The tail swooped down, and Link deflected it with the sword. The scorpion tried again to kill Link, only to have its tail deflected by the Master Sword. Link saw that the scorpion was weakening from the stab wounds earlier. He only had to keep deflecting the blows, and stay conscious. The scorpion tightened its grip, and now Link could not breathe. The scorpion raised its tail, and Link blocked it with the sword. The scorpion slipped on the blood soaked altar, and was near the edge of the altar. The scorpion was now on the edge of the altar, losing balance as Link was losing consciousness. Link lost consciousness. The scorpion raised its tail once more preparing to deliver the final blow. But it had finally succumbed to the blood loss induced by Link earlier. It collapsed at the edge of the altar. Its claw fell down from its raised position, and released the unconscious Link. Link's unconscious body plummeted towards the earth, gaining speed with each passing millisecond.


	14. Out of the Desert

**Chapter 14: Out of the Desert to find Ganondorf**

Without hesitation, Norclas leapt across the gap and landed rolling on top of the altar. He reached the side on which Link's unconscious body had been dropped earlier. Leaping over the corpse of the giant scorpion, he fell down towards Link's falling body. Staying close to the sides of the altar, he narrowed his arms against his body, gaining speed. He was now even with Link's body. Passing it just barely, in one swift motion he moved his legs towards the side of the altar, and jumped off it, trying to catch Link's body. Jumping towards the wall, arms outstretched, he caught Link a few feet above the ground. Landing safely, he laid down Link's body near the altar. At the entrance of the temple now stood Denpolent, riding Epona, with a large satchel over his back.

"How long has he been out?" asked Denpolent while dismounting Epona and bringing his satchel in front of him

"A minute, tops" replied Norclas, getting up off the ground

"Was he stung?"

"Not that I saw. You may want to look for yourself, it is your area of expertise"

Denpolent walked towards the body of Link and looked around the torso for any rips or tears in the shirt. He saw the bandaged arm of Link and took out a small, clear bottle filled with an orange liquid. Unwrapping the wound, he poured the liquid on it, and watched as the wound closed almost immediately. Finding no other tears, he took out a bottle containing a red liquid. Just as he had done earlier in the cave, he knelt down beside Link and elevated his head against his thigh. He opened Link's mouth with one hand, and poured the liquid down his throat with the other.

"Will he be alright?" asked Norclas, worried that he didn't do more during Link's battle.

"He should be fine", replied Denpolent, in an effort to appease the worried soul of Norclas. Secretly Denpolent wasn't all that sure. He didn't know if the scorpion had squeezed the very life out of Link. All he could do now was hope.

"I didn't know you'd be here so fast", commented Norclas, attempting to break the uneasy silence

"There are many things you don't know about me"

"Such as..."

"What happened?" Link rubbed his head and slowly stood up.

"You were rendered unconscious by the giant scorpion when you were battling. I caught you as you were falling and Denpolent came and gave you medicine."

"The scorpion is dead then?"

"But of course. The wounds you gave to his underbelly bled him to death"

"I hope I do not meet the same fate on my journey"

"As do we all"

"Any signs of Ganondorf?"

"Unfortunately, all that was seen was a man riding a dark horse out of the desert."

"Which way?"

"Get to the wall opposite the entrance of the Temple and go straight"

Link walked out the door and mounted Epona. He rode to the left and made his away around the Temple to the other side. Riding as fast as Epona could gallop, Link rode off with the setting sun now at his back. Link was now determined to find Ganondorf, knowing he could not have gotten that far in such a short period of time. Exiting the desert, with a full moon waxing, Link rode into Hyrule Field. He decided that if Ganondorf was no where to be seen, the Tower on the Mountain might be the next place that was hit, and he would go there, in a blind attempt at finding and defeating Ganondorf

Link reached the center of Hyrule Field at the full gallop of Epona. Taking a quick look around and finding nothing, he turned towards the mountains. Suddenly, a turret broke through the earth in front of Link, causing Epona to stop dead in her tracks. Link was thrown from Epona and crashed side-first into the turret. Link tenderly got up, clutching his ribs in pain. He and Epona moved as fast as they could out of the way of the rising turret. Link looked back and saw that now three more turrets were tearing through the fertile earth. The turrets were in a square formation, each no bigger than six feet tall and ten feet in diameter. In between the two front turrets, there was a small box like structure. Link inspected it, and found that on each visible side there was a grate. Link kicked in a side grate and caused a loud crash to be heard. Link slid in the opening, and fell to the cold hard stone floor.


	15. The Underground Dungeon

**Chapter 15: The Underground Dungeon**

The moonlight poured into the room. Link looked around and spotted a door with the symbol on his mirror shield on it. Taking his shield off of his back, Link reflected the moonlight onto the door, causing it to open. Link entered the doorway and followed a passage into a large room. The large room was lit by the moonlight pouring in from grates at the top of each wall. Link saw a large pillar in the center of the room, attached to it were wall chains used to chain prisoners. Link walked left and saw another doorway with the symbol on it. Using his shield, he opened the door. Walking in along the passage, Link came into a small room that had a skeleton chained to the wall, wearing chain mail armor. Link took the chain mail armor and put it on under his tunic, figuring it would offer some protection later on.

Link re-entered the main room and walked the perimeter of it, passing a few torture devices that were once used to gain information from prisoners. Link came to a door locked by four wooden beams. Link vainly tried to move them. Giving up, he continued his walk and found a door that led to a staircase going up. Following it, he found himself on one of the four turrets. Link saw a turnstile in the center of the turret, being protected by a skeleton holding a sword and shield. Link went to move the turnstile, when suddenly, the skeleton moved towards him! It swung its blade at Link, which Link blocked at the last minute with his shield. Spinning around, Link swung the Master Sword at the legs of the skeleton, cutting them clean off, causing the skeleton to fall backwards. The skeleton pulled itself on the ground, trying to get back up. Link picked it up and booted it out of the turret, and watched it fall to the ground, and shatter. Link pushed the turnstile, and heard a loud thud, indicating that one beam had been removed.

Link descended the stairway, and continued moving along the wall. Finding another doorway, he climbed the staircase behind it to another turret with a turnstile. Seeing a skeleton, Link quickly decapitated it, not wanting to give it a chance to fight. Unfortunately for him, the skeleton still fought, but not well. Link dodged aimless swipes at him made by the headless skeleton, and cut of his arms when he got the chance. Link then booted it off the turret, and watched it shatter on the ground. Link pushed the turnstile, and heard another loud thud: another beam had moved. Two more, thought Link. Link descended the turret and entered the main room. Finishing his walk around the perimeter with no more doors along the wall, he looked at the center pillar. He found something odd about the center pillar, but couldn't put his finger on it. He pulled at one of the wall chains, and a stone slab moved from the opposite side of the pillar, revealing a staircase.

Link slowly walked down the winding staircase, with his hand along the wall to help him down, since there wasn't any moonlight on the staircase. Link entered a dark room, lit only by a few lit torches along the wall. Link walked with his hand against the wall, and found a doorway. Entering it, he climbed a winding staircase to find himself at the top of another turret. Link saw the skeleton guarding the turnstile, and in one swift move cut off its arm and the larger part of his torso. Link booted the pieces off the turret, and watched them shatter upon impact. Link pushed the turnstile, unlocking the third beam from the door. Link went back down to the room, and walked around the perimeter to find another doorway that led to another turret. Link found this one with an unguarded turnstile. Link pushed the turnstile and heard the thud of the last beam moving to the unlocked position. Link began to walk back towards there, when without warning; he was ambushed by ten skeleton soldiers hiding. Link tried to fight back, but the numbers were overwhelming. The soldiers captured Link and tied him up, forcing him downstairs. They were in the darkened room when one of the stone soldiers opened a door that led down another floor to a large jail. The skeleton soldiers tossed Link in, and locked the door. Link tried to knock down the door, but to no avail. Giving up, he sat in the center of the room, when he was greeted by a man with graying hair and a beard.

"Hello, Link", said the man.

"Hello. What's your name?" asked Link.

"I am Rinoma, the Sage of this Underground Dungeon. When Ganondorf invaded, he threw me in here to rot. He left an army of undead soldiers here to guard it from anyone trying to save me."

"So Ganondorf has indeed been here as I had suspected."

"Yes he has. And I can see that you found the Chain mail of Kamarrian, as it was foretold that the warrior would."

"Can you do me a favor?"

"Sure"

"Can you untie me?"

The door suddenly opened and twenty skeleton soldiers came in. They moved straight for Link, getting to him before he could be untied. The picked him up and forced him up the two staircases back into the main room. They moved him towards the once barred door and forced him in. The room was lit by moonlight from grates at the peak of the walls. Inside, Link saw an iron maiden. On the opposite side of it was pale-faced man, commanding the soldiers to put Link in it. They stripped him of his sword and shield, and forced him into the device. Link, now tied up and in the iron maiden, had only a few seconds to live before they impaled him. Link panicked, knowing that an escape would be impossible against twenty armed soldiers. The iron maiden closed on Link, but Link felt nothing. The chain mail had protected him from harm. Knowing that the soldiers didn't know this, Link eagerly waited for them to open it. It would be his once chance at escaping with his life.

The soldiers opened it under orders of their commander, and found Link still alive. Link came out and roundhoused two skeletons, causing them to crumble. A skeleton dashed at Link. Link side stepped him and tripped him, causing him to go flying into another skeleton. Another skeleton came at Link with his sword, and Link moved his hands, causing the skeleton to cut them free. Link used his newly freed hands to snap the skeletons head off, and chucked it at another skeleton, causing his head to come off. Link ran to his equipment, and armed himself. The fourteen remaining skeletons stood by their commander, glaring at him. The commander ordered his soldiers to attack Link, and they charged in unison. Link took out his boomerang and threw it at the skeletons, taking four out with it before it came back. The ten remaining skeletons were now closing in on Link, making it impossible for him to get another boomerang throw off. Link backflipped and readied himself. With the skeletons still closing in, Link did a spin attack taking out half of the skeletons. Two of the remaining skeletons grabbed Link's arms when he finished, and two his legs, immobilizing him. The other skeleton raised its sword, preparing to decapitate Link. Link looked at the blade coming at him. Timing it perfectly, he ducked his head at the last minute, causing the skeleton to miss and decapitate his fellow skeleton instead. With his shield arm free, Link bashed his shield against the skeleton, causing it to crumble. With only three skeletons left, they let go of Link and prepared to triple team him. Link dodged three blade swipes while taking out one skeleton, leaving only two left. One charged at Link, and Link ducked, tossing him into a wall. The remaining skeleton attempted to stab Link, but the Chain mail of Kamarrian prevented it. The skeleton was confused, and Link took this opportunity to kill it. Now only the commander remained.

"You have some skill", commented the commander

"And you are?" asked Link, while the commander was descending from his chair.

"I have no name," replied the commander smugly. "However I cannot let you live."

The commander drew his broadsword and charged at Link. Link leapt to the left, landed with a hand and two feet on the ground keeping his balance. The commander charged again, and Link leapt to the right. Now, Link set himself for an attack. The commander swung wildly at Link, and Link blocked each blow with his shield, causing sparks to fall to the ground. Link was backed against the wall with the commander right near him. Link stabbed the commanded in the chest, but the commander only grabbed Link and tossed him against a wall, causing some stones to come out and fall on Link.

"Fool. I cannot be killed like a human can"

Link was dazed and his vision blurred as the commander came closer. The commander removed the stones with his sword, and prepared to deliver the final blow. With the blade rushing towards his neck, Link moved his sword at the last minute to block it. His neck was safe, but the force caused the Master Sword to move and cut Link's cheek. Bleeding from the face and staining his tunic as it rolled down his cheek bone, Link forced himself up. In the process, the commander delivered a blow to Link's back. Link fell forward, hurt, but not pierced as the chain mail had protected him. Link yelled out in pain, and dropped his shield to clutch his back with his right hand. The commander slowly closed in on Link, enjoying every minute of Link's suffering. Link crawled towards a wall, and slowly pulled himself up, favoring his back

"You've come far, Link. But all those you faced before were nothing compared to me."

The commander raised his sword high, and Link saw the blade at its peak height. Link took this momentary window and sliced off the head of the commander, causing the head to turn to ashes when it hit the ground. The body fell backwards and Link looked at it triumphantly. Link limped towards the door when he heard a noise. He looked back and saw that the body was moving without a head. Link could not dodge any blows with his back the way it was. With the body closing in, Link sliced off the sword arm of it. Like the head, it turned to ashes when it hit the ground. The remaining arm grabbed Link at the throat and lifted him up. Link dropped his sword, and clutched the wrist of the arm, attempting to cause it to let go, but to no luck. It pressed Link against a wall and began tightening its grip, squeezing the air out of Link. Link's vision blurred as he was fighting a losing battle.

Then, Rinoma appeared in the doorway. He picked up the Master Sword and moved towards the body. He sliced off its legs, causing the legs to turn to ashes. Link fell to the ground, but the arm still had its grip. Rinoma saw Link's face turning blue and without hesitation sliced the remaining arm, causing it to turn to ashes, along with the torso. Link stood up while grabbing his throat, attempting to ease the pain caused by the body of the commander. 

"Thanks, Rinoma" Link said in a raspy voice.

"It was my pleasure", replied Rinoma, handing Link the Master Sword. 

"I'd love to stay and chat, but I've got to stop Ganondorf".

"I know"

Link limped towards the door, and collapsed half way there, lying flat on his stomach.


	16. To the Mountains!

**Chapter 16: To the Mountains!  
**  
Link lay motionless on the floor. Rinoma moved towards Link to try and help him, but Link slowly pushed himself up. Link continued walking towards the exit, now with his hand on the wall for support. Link stumbled, and fell to his knees, panting for breath.

"Stay here and rest a while, Link. You are no good to go and fight Ganondorf in this condition", suggested Rinoma.

"No..." said Link, still panting for breath. "Too much time...to give Ganondorf...I need to...stop him before...he gets much further. Did you see...which way...he went?"

"To the mountains but that's beyond the point. Look at yourself. You can barely talk. You can't walk. How exactly are you going to stop Ganondorf when you can't walk out of here? How are you going to climb a mountain when you don't even have the energy to say a sentence without panting for breath?"

"I'll...find a way"

Link picked himself up and limped out of the dungeon, using the Master Sword as a cane to support himself as he made his way out of the underground dungeon. Rinoma, knowing anything he tried to say would have no effect on Link at all, decided to help Link out of the dungeon. They reached where Link entered the dungeon, and now the moon was setting, and the sun was barely spreading its rays across the horizon onto Hyrule Field. Link tossed his grappling hook up, causing him much energy in the process. It hooked on the outside, and he began to climb up slowly. Link was a foot away from getting out of the dungeon, his body gave out and he fell flat on Rinoma.

"Owwww", moaned Rinoma. "You can get up now, Link".

But Link couldn't get up. He was unconscious; Rinoma tried to get Link off of him but was unsuccessful. Then, down from the rope appeared Denpolent, with a bottle in his hand.

"Not that I'm complaining, but why are you here?" asked Rinoma

"On my way to somewhere. But more to the point, it looks like you could use some help."

Denpolent pushed Linked off of Rinoma and Link's body hit the ground with a small thud. As he had done before, Denpolent elevated Link's head and poured a liquid down his throat. Moments later, Link got up and rubbed his head.

"What happened?" asked Link.

"Well, you thought you could get out of here under your own power, and in doing so fell from there and you were unconscious," replied Rinoma.

"And I came here and revived you"

"Thank you both for helping me. But really, I have got to be going. Evil waits for no man". Link began climbing the grappling hook.

"But..." tried Rinoma

"He'll be fine" interrupted Denpolent. "But I have to go where I was going to go. You'll be safe in here, I take it?"

"Do I have a choice?"

"No, not really"

"Ok then".

Link finished his ascent and Denpolent followed him up. When Denpolent got up, Link too the grappling hook and packed it with him. Link mounted Epona and rode towards the mountains and Denpolent walked in the opposite direction. Link made his way through Kakariko Village. Link found a man and paid him some rupees to watch after Epona while he climbed the mountain. Link made his way up the mountain side, and passed the Volcano, where he had saved Sekim and defeated the dragon not too long before. Link slowed his pace; now feeling the sun beat down upon him.

Soon, Link arrived at a cave. He looked around and saw that he could go no further, and that the only path left was the cave. Link entered the cave, and ran his across the wall to help him find his way. After a long walk, and much tripping and nearly falling into two holes, Link emerged at the other end of the cave to come face to face with a straight ascent. Link looked on the rock face, and saw a many slabs of rock sticking out. Link climbed the rock face using these for support. Panting, Link reached the top and collapsed on the mountain, panting for breath. After regaining his composure, Link got up and looked around. He saw the Tower across a narrow, but long rope bridge. Below that, Link saw a deep chasm, and at the bottom, several jagged rocks. Link slowly walked across the rope bridge, being careful not to fall to his death. Out of the Tower came two Moblins, armed with swords. They went towards the rope bridge and began cutting the ends. Link went quicker and quicker across the bridge, hoping to make it before the rope bridge was cut. Link was only a few feet away from the other side when the rope finally separated, and fell back towards the other side. Link leapt in the air, and caught the edge of the side with his hand. Now dangling from one side, Link panicked. The moblins were closing in on him, with their swords raised, ready to take one swipe at the helpless Link.


	17. The Tower on the Mountain

**Chapter 17: The Tower on the Mountain**

Grasping the ledge with his left arm, Link frantically tried to get his right arm up to the ledge to try to pull himself up before the Moblins could lower their swords upon his fragile upper body. Link was not quick enough, the Moblins were lowering their swords and Link had only just grasped the ledge with his right hand. Link watched as the blades moved closer to his skull with each increasing beat of his heart. At the very last moment, Link let go of the ledge with his left hand, and with every bit of strength he could muster, swung over towards his right side to that now his back was against the cliff face. Link gripped the cliff with his left hand, and swung over again, now with enough distance between himself and the moblins to climb up on top of the mountain. Link now unsheathed his Master Sword and readied himself to face the two charging moblins. Link glanced around quickly, seeing that he was backed up against the edge of the cliff. Contemplating what he could do as the moblins closed the gap between themselves and Link, Link finally thought of something. Grabbing his boomerang, he threw it at the left moblin, who was promptly knocked to the ground. The other moblin still charged, and Link tripped him at the last second, watching as he fell to his death from the height. The other moblin now charged at Link, with a bump on his head from the boomerang. Link took off his shield, and braced himself for the impact. Link blocked the blow, and beheaded the moblin with ease. Wasting no time, Link ran to the entrance of the tower. Looking up, he awed in how tall it was. Link then took a deep breath, and entered the tower, ready for anything.

Link looked around a large circular room lined with stone window frames to allowing the sun to light the area. Seeing nothing of significance, save a pair of dusty gauntlets along the edge of the room. Link pressed on, looking for a way to ascend the mammoth structure. Finding nothing, Link exited the Tower and looked up at its side. Link saw more stone window frames above the previous ones, and decided that the best way up would be to scale the side of the tower. Throwing his grappling hook at the frame, Link landed it inside the second story, and began to climb the structure. Being careful wish his footing, Link climbed the tower at a slow pace. Finally reaching the second story, he fell into the room ungracefully, and wound up his grappling hook. Looking around, he saw that this room was smaller than the others, and appeared to be cut in half the previous room below him. Link saw a door blocking his way onto the other side, and failed to open it, as it was locked. Link tried busting it down with his shoulder, but in vain. Link looked around, and saw a pot at the edge of the room. Picking it up, he smashed it in between his hands, and found a key in the debris. Link fit the key in the keyhole and opened the door. Immediately as he entered the room, a moblin tackled Link and pinned him against the ground in a spread-eagle position as another moblin closed in. Link forced his right arm free from the grip of the moblin, and used it to punch the moblin holding him down across the head, knocking him unconscious. Now free, Link rolled to his left, and cut down the Moblin approaching him. Link looked around the room, and found a ladder leading up to the next level.

Link climbed the ladder, and looked around the room in which he now stood. Link found a ladder with a trapdoor above it that remained shut. Link crossed the room to the ladder and climbed it. The trap door would not budge. Link tried and tried, but the trapdoor would not move at all. Frustrated, Link descended the ladder and looked around the room, hoping. Link moved to the window, and looked outside. Looking up, he saw that the next floor contained no windows, so scaling would be impossible. Dejected but not giving up, Link scrutinizingly searched the room for a method of advancing to the next floor. Looking in the center of the room, Link spied a slightly raised tile. Link stepped on it, and the trapdoor slid open. Link moved towards the latter, and the door closed. Stepping on the tile again, the door slid open, and as Link stepped off, it closed. Angry, Link jumped up and down on the tile as the door slid open and shut. Link looked around for something to put on the tile. Finding a loose stone in the window, Link lifted it with all his might. Struggling to move it, Link stumbled towards the tile. Link dropped the stone on the tile with a sigh of relief, in the process breaking the stone. Enough of the stone remained on the tile to keep the door open, and Link climbed the ladder to advance. 

Standing in the windowless and consequently dark room, Link groped along the wall to find a means of advancing. Link heard footsteps, and as a reflex armed himself for combat. After waiting a minute and hearing nothing, Link sheathed his sword and slung his shield over his back. Link felt around and found a statue in the room. Feeling the statue, Link moved the statue's right arm down in the process. Immediately, a trap door from the ceiling opened, and light from the story above him poured into the room. Link looked around, and found no way to access the room. Link pushed the statue towards the trap door, reasoning that it was his only way to access the room. Now with the statue positioned correctly, Link clumsily climbed it. With his feet on the shoulders of the statue, Link jumped up, and caused the statue to fall over and shatter. Climbing into the room as he hung on the edge of the trap door, Link saw someone he had encountered before.

"You still haven't gotten the hang of the acrobatic aspect of your job description," chuckled Denpolent.

"It's not as easy as it looks," replied Link, dusting himself off as he stood up. "Not that I'm complaining, but what are you doing here?"

"I," began Denpolent, in an over-the-top haughty voice, which made Link hold back laughter, "Am the Sage of the Tower".

"But, but, I thought..."

"Exactly! You thought. But you thought wrong. You, like everyone else, thought," said Denpolent with extra emphasis on thought, "that I was merely a witchdoctor. I enjoy helping people, Link, that's why I am a witch doctor. However, I am also a sage. Few know of it"

"How'd you get up here before me?"

"You took the long way. There's a shorter way, and a less dangerous way. I've never trusted that bridge. But enough of the formalities. As you can see, we have a bit of a problem. The giant vulture has been let out, and he, rather, it, it is circling the tower as we speak".

"That's not very good".

"Thank you for stating the obvious," smiled Denpolent. "Now, I assume you found the Gauntlets of Damiani."

"The what?"

"The Gauntlets which the Legendary Warrior used to defeat the vulture before. They were in this Tower. At the bottom!"

"Oh. Ummm, yea, about that, I um, I thought"

"Again with the thinking. Thinking will cost you your life one day. Haven't you noticed that at every single Wonder you go to, that you get something to help you defeat the enemy that has been left behind to face you? Do you think it's all one big coincidence?"

"So basically I have to go back down and get them?"

"If we weren't on a timetable, you would. I'LL go get them. You move onward. I'll meet you at the top. Good luck to you, Link"

With those words, Denpolent went through the trap door and went to retrieve the Gauntlets of Damiani. Link looked around the room, and found a small staircase which led to the next floor. Link entered the next floor and found himself with a throng of moblins. Wasting no time, Link took the Bow of Reldeif off of his back and began firing at each moblin, piercing their skin in various places. Several fell to the floor never again to get up, and more charged at Link. Too close to fire arrows, Link slung the Bow of Reldeif over his back and took out the Master Sword. Link slashed the stomach of three moblins approaching him, and three more moblins slipped in the blood pouring from their brothers' stomachs. Link jumped over the fallen moblins, and attacked the two remaining moblins while he flew threw the air. With the room clear of enemies, Link found jutted out stones along a wall, and a trapdoor above them. He climbed up, and found himself in a room containing no visible ceiling, only a winding staircase. Link looked at the base of the stair case and read to himself the worlds scrawled across a stone.

"If you are reading this, then the vulture has been resurrected and Hyrule is in danger. Let it be known to the reader that I was able to defeat it with the aid of my gauntlets, which gave me strength in battle. The monster's weakness is its legs. Signed, Damiani".

Link ran his hand across these words, and looked up at the winding staircase. Taking a deep breath, Link climbed the first step of the staircase. Using his right hand to balance himself along the wall, he climbed the many stairs. After ten minutes, Link reached a small landing. There, he stopped to catch his breath. Looking up, he saw he still had a long way to go. Link continued climbing the stairs for what seemed like ages. Finally, Link reached the last step, breathless. After taking a moment to gather himself, Link opened the trapdoor above him. Poking his head through, he looked around and saw that he was on top of the Tower. Surrounding the top, there was a small stone wall to prevent anyone from falling to their death. Link then put his arms through, and pulled himself up. The sun was still out, and Link could see shadows passing along the top of this tower. Looking up, Link saw a small black shadow of a bird against the sun. Link took out the Bow of Reldeif, and readied himself for when the bird would descend, figuring he could do some damage to it quite handily with arrows. As the bird descended, it grew larger and larger, and Link realized that he underestimated the size of the vulture. As it swooped down, Link ducked, just barely missing being picked up by it.

Link got to his feet, and took a deep breath. This time ready, he pulled the bow back, and held the arrow in place. As the vulture made its way around, Link watched it. Now coming straight at Link, Link let the arrow fly, and to his shock, it had no effect. Link jumped out of the path of the vulture. Link then remembered what he read earlier, about the beast's legs. Link took out the Master Sword, and hoped to cut the vultures lets. As the vulture made a swoop at Link, Link raised the Master Sword, ready to slice the legs. Link swung the blade, but it missed the legs, and Link caught a face full of talons in the process. Link was thrown backwards against the wall, his face now dripping with blood from three cuts caused by talons: one above each eye, and one just below his mouth. Link flipped over the wall, and was hanging on for dear life with his right hand, his left hand holding the Master Sword. As the vulture moved towards Link, the trap door swung open and Denpolent appeared wearing the Gauntlets of Damiani. Denpolent ran towards Link and pulled him up, just as the vulture was about to crash against Link. With a moment to breathe, Denpolent took of the gauntlets and gave them to Link as the vulture made his way back to encircling the Tower in flight. Now with a renewed strength, Link got up and got the Master Sword off of the Tower Top. Link was ready this time. He was going to slice the legs of the beast. As the vulture swooped down, Link raised the blade. Unfortunately, he was not quick enough. The vulture caught him in his talons, and was now forcing him across the top of the Tower, dragging his feet along the stone.

"Link, use the Gauntlets!" instructed Denpolent.

"How?"

"You're stronger. Try using your arms".

Link wasted not one more second to use this tip. With all his might, he moved his arms down, and in the process, brought the vulture down to the stone with him. Link now held one leg in his right arm. Link used this opportunity to slice off the leg of the beast. The vulture let out a cry of pain, and immediately kicked his other leg at the body of Link, tearing his tunic, but causing him no harm thanks to the Chain mail of Kamarrian. Link looked as the vulture flew awkwardly in the sky. It moved in, trying to finish Link off. Link, now knew what he had to do, readied himself. At the last second, he leapt to one side, and grabbed the remaining leg of the vulture. Pulling the beast down, and causing a few stones of atop the small wall encompassing the top of the Tower to fall to the ground below. Link took his the Master Sword, and cut off the remaining leg as he held it down. Now unable to move effectively, the vulture squirmed around. Link grabbed the tail feathers of the bird, and pulled it closer to him. Link took the Master Sword, and stabbed the vulture in the heart, causing it to yell out in pain, and die. Link let out a sigh of relief, having defeated the beast. Link fell to one knee, and held his right fist against the stone to help support his body.


	18. Link's Confession

**Chapter 18: Link's Confession**

"You survived. Good thing too, or Hyrule would be in a bad way", said Denpolent. "Also, I'd be out a couple hundred rupees?"

"WHAT?" asked Link incredulously. "You bet on whether or not I'D DIE?"

"Hey hey hey, calm down. I bet on you to survive, so calm down. Anyhow, to more important matters, you have to find Ganondorf"

"Do you know where he went?"

"No, but there isn't anywhere else to go but down the mountain".

"I kind of figured that out"

"Ask question, get answer"

"Right. Anyhow, you said there was a shortcut down the mountain. Where is it?"

"In back of this tower, there is a series of small cliffs jutting out from the mountain where you can easily descend".

"That's less dangerous?"

"Well it's better than a rickety old bridge that was cut off, now isn't it?"

"Alright. Thanks. Now is there a shorter way I can get off this tower"

"And live? No".

"Alright. I best be going".

"Good bye, Link, and don't die"

"I won't"

Link went to the trap door in the floor of the top of the tower and went through it, beginning his long descent towards the bottom. Going down the long winding staircase, Link decided that he was going to see Zelda after he got off the mountain. Link reached the bottom and where the words of Damiani had been before was now solid stone. They had disappeared with the defeat of the vulture. Link went through the trap door below him into the blood soaked room that once contained Moblins. Forging on ahead, Link went down to the floor below him where he encountered Denpolent, and made his way through with ease. He fell through the trap door ungracefully, and landed on the chunks of stone that were once a statue. After taking a moment to gather himself, Link got up and dusted himself off, and continued his descent. Link found the trapdoor in the ceiling and climbed down the ladder. Now Link was in the room where he was nearly killed by moblins who ambushed him. Continuing on, not wishing to remember that incident, Link went through the door to the other room, and hooked his grappling hook on the edge of the window. Link rappelled down the side of the tower to the ground floor, and entered a window. Link finally reached the bottom, and exited the tower.

Link went around the tower, and just as Denpolent said, found the cliffs. Taking his time, Link made his way down these cliffs. After many cliffs, many near falls, and various bruises sustained while Link made his way down, Link reached the bottom of the mountain. Link then went to Kakariko Village to retrieve Epona. Link rode through Kakriko Village where he made his way to Hyrule Castle. Upon arriving, he was greeted by Mihalich. Link tied up Epona, and went to the garden to see Zelda. Upon entering the gardens, Link saw Zelda and ran up to her and hugged her.

"I missed you, Zelda."

"I missed you too, Link. Now, I will say that you have done an impressive job, saving six sages. Only one remains at the Floating Castle. Ganondorf will probably attack there next"

"I know. But he can wait. I've wanted to see you for so long."

"Well I suppose that you are correct. Since you are here, I don't suppose I could interest you in a picnic, could I?"

"Of course you could. Let's go"

Link and Zelda walked hand in hand as they exited Hyrule Castle and found a nice tree under which to settle and eat. Link and Zelda ate their food, while occasionally feeding each other. After finishing, they laid back and took in the landscape. Then, they gazed into each other's eyes and shared a kiss. Then, they walked hand in hand back towards Hyrule Castle. Link and Zelda said their goodbyes in the garden, and Link went to see the king, to check how many swords were needed. After receiving an order for five swords, Link exited the Castle, mounted Epona, and rode back to his house, deciding that he needed a little rest before going to confront Ganondorf at the Floating Castle, where Ganondorf was bound to show up next. The next morning, Link woke up and started to make the swords, convincing that he did need to make a living still, despite his also being the chosen one to save Hyrule, all the while thinking of Zelda. After a day of sword making, Link called it a day, and went to bed, convincing himself that it was best that he got more sleep before he went to the Floating Castle. That night Link dreamt about Zelda. After Link woke up, he ate breakfast, and packed up his swords, and went to deliver them to the king.

Upon arriving at the Castle, Link was once again greeted by Mihalich, who took Epona and tied it up for him. Link made his way towards the throne room, where he found the king sitting on the throne.

"Link, didn't expect to see you so soon"

"I put in a full day yesterday of making these."

"I see. So that comes to one hundred fifty rupees, correct?"

"Yes sir. Actually, there is something I've been meaning to ask you"

"Yes?"

"Well, you see, I love your daughter, Zelda. And I was wondering if it would be alright with you if I asked her to take my hand in marriage"

A tear welled up in the king's eye. "Oh yes, Link. You've made me so happy today. I've always known that you two were right for each other. Go to the garden, she's in there. Good luck, my boy".

"Thank you sir"

Link made his way to the garden where he found Zelda sitting down on the grass beside a small bird bath.

"Zelda, how are you?"

"Link? Is that you? Shouldn't you be out fighting Ganondorf?"

"Yes, well, truth be told, I haven't been feeling my fittest lately. I've been wrestling with my emotions, Zelda. I know that I have to go face Ganondorf, but I don't want to go face him. I had to convince myself that I was unable to face him. I'm scared, Zelda. These past few battles I've had before I saw you the day before yesterday have scared me. I've nearly died, Zelda. I don't want to die. I want to live, Zelda."

"Well, fear is only what you make it, Link. Courage is not being unafraid; it is being able to overcome those fears, Link. I know you have the courage to do it. Just look at what you've already done. You've done what no other man has done by going into the wonders and defeating the beasts. I know you can do it Link. I believe in you"

"Well there is one other thing, Zelda"

"What's that?"

"Well, I've been wondering about something. When this is all over, and I've defeated Ganondorf, and Hyrule is safe, I was wondering if you would...consider...maybe...marrying me?"

Tears of joy ran from Zelda's eyes. "Oh yes, Link. Yes, I will. You have always been the one for me, I knew it from the first time I met you."

Suddenly, Mihalich ran in to the garden. "Link, Princess Zelda, there is urgent news. Ganondorf is at the Floating Castle!"

"Well, Zelda", began Link. "This is it. I am going to finish off Ganondorf when I get there, and then, you and I will be able to live together".

Link began exit the garden but he was pulled back on the arm by Zelda.

"Wait, Link"

"Yes?"

"Don't die, Link." With that, Zelda kissed Link on the lips, while Mihalich turned his head way to give them privacy.

"Zelda, I'll be back in no time at all, and Hyrule will be safe. I promise".

Link exited the Castle and untied Epona. He mounted her, and rode to his house. Stopping there, he gathered his gear up, and then made his way to the Floating Castle at the End of Charted Territory.


	19. The Floating Castle

**Chapter 19: The Floating Castle at the End of Charted Territory**

Link rode towards the Floating Castle like there was no tomorrow, hoping to catch Ganondorf there and defeat him. Then, and only then, could he go on with his life, and be with the one he loved so dearly. Link never took in the beautiful landscape he was passing on his way to the Floating Castle, only thinking of defeating Ganondorf. Finally, after what seemed like days, Link arrived at the Floating Castle at the End of Charted Territory.

"Feels more like the Floating Castle at the End of the World," thought Link.

The castle, surrounded by a thick fog, was floating on a cliff which overlooked a dark abyss. There was nothing else in site for miles. Link rode around the castle to look for a method of getting up to the castle doors. Seeing nothing on the ground, Link looked up at the castle walls. Finally, Link spotted a ledge protruding from the castle. Swinging his grappling hook towards it and latching it on, Link climbed up to the doors. Link took a deep breath, and entered the doors, eager to find Ganondorf. Link took in the interior of the castle: There was a pit in the center with walls lined with spikes, above it, a walled aisle way wrapping around the perimeter, above that, was the floor where Link was standing, and above Link was another floor, and, judging from his view when he first arrived at the castle, above that was the roof of the castle. In each of the four corners was a turret that led all the way to the roof. Link saw very little in the room he was in; most of the room was obscured by darkness.

"Now if I was Ganondorf, where would I go?" Link asked himself. "I'd go up. And there's only one way up". 

Continuing along the room, careful to avoid the hole cut in the center that led to the pit, Link encountered a skeleton soldier. Already knowing what to do, he sliced off the head of the skeleton, and punted the body into the pit. Link continued along the room, and found a doorway in a turret that contained a winding stairway. Link climbed to the next level, and emerged in a medium sized room that had in it several human sized wooden dummies used to train soldiers, lit by a few torches held against the wall. Suddenly, the dummies came to life and slowly moved towards Link. Quickly, Link took out his bow and aimed it straight at the dummies. The arrow stuck into the torso of the dummy, and did nothing else. Link took out the Master Sword and waited for the dummies to get within range. When they did, Link sliced off their wooden heads, but the dummies still continued moving. Inching closer and closer to the wall, Link was running out of ideas. Then, it came to him. Wasting no more time, Link side kicked the torsos of the dummies, giving him some room to maneuver. Link ran out of the corner towards the torches. Grabbing one off the wall, he tossed it at the dummies, which burned to ashes quickly. Link then exited the room and went into the next room, which had a window with drapes and a large bed.

"This must have been the king's room," thought Link.

Link looked around the room, and under the bed, but did not find anything. In two corners of the room were turrets. Choosing the right one, Link climbed up the staircase inside it to find himself on top of a turret. Link looked around at the top of the castle, and saw a shadowy figure on the roof. Link tied his grappling hook tightly on part of the turret, and climbed down to the roof to investigate. When Link reached the figure, Link found out that it was a keesee. Remembering its poisonous fangs, Link back stepped quickly and took out Reldief's bow and shot an arrow at it. The bat died, but in doing so let out a loud screech. Suddenly, Link heard the sounds of flapping wings. Looking around at the fog, Link saw several blurred figures. As they got closer and closer to Link, they became more and more clear. More keesee were flying at Link. Link shot two arrows at two keesee, killing them instantly. But for the rest, they closed the gap and were now too close to shoot. Link took out his shield and allowed a couple of keesee to bounce of the shield and fall to the roof, where Link wasted no time in killing them with the Master Sword. Now, only six remained. Two flew at Link's head from opposite directions, and at the last moment, Link ducked and let them crash into each other. Then he sliced them, killing them instantly. Four remained, and they circled the sky. Link took this opportunity to fire more arrows, and kill all but one as it swooped down, ready to bite. Link then took his shield, and allowed it to knock itself unconscious as it hit the shield. Link killed the unconscious bat as it lay on the roof.

"HEELLLLLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPP" screamed a male voice that pierced the silence.

"He's in castle," thought Link. Link ran towards the turret and climbed the rope of the grappling hook. Link ran down the stairs of the turret, and through the king's room. Then he ran down the next flight of stairs and found himself in the original room. Looking around quickly, Link found nothing. Moving towards the pit, he saw Ganondorf holding a pale-faced man in the pit. Without hesitation, Link jumped down towards the pit, and landed softly in the sand that was at the bottom. Ganondorf immediately dropped the man, who was now bleeding, and stared at Link.

"So you've found me, Link" said Ganondorf.

"And now I'm going to kill you," replied Link.

"Oh, now that wouldn't be very nice, besides, you have other things you need to worry about."

"Such as".

"THIS".

Ganondorf ran towards the only turret that reached the pit and ran inside, shut the door, and climbed the stairs. Link ran after him, only to be stopped by the pale faced man.

"What are you doing?" asked Link. 

"Stop, if you value your life," replied the man.

"And you are the sage, right,"

"Yea, pretty cool, huh? Me, LeBaron, a sage. Look there's something I need to tell you, you need to know it before you go to face Ganondorf."

There was no time for LeBaron to talk. From the level above that was the aisle way with a wall emerged several moblins and skeletons holding bows and arrows. From the room where Link entered the castle there emerged more moblins and skeletons, and they jumped down towards the pit.

"You're wounded. Here, take this and protect yourself" said Link, and he handed LeBaron the Mirror Shield. LeBaron took it and sat on the sand, his wounded leg could no longer support his body.

The enemies landed with a thud, and one skeleton immediately broke upon contact with the sand, his legs breaking off his body. The skeletons and moblins closed in on Link as the others pulled their bows back readied their arrows. They fired their arrows at Link, who blocked some with the Master Sword as he jumped out of the way. Now was his moment, while they reloaded, he could take on the moblins and skeletons on the ground. Link was careful as he charged at the group; he did not have his shield to protect him. Link cut several moblins across the abdomen, and then backed off, and looked up just in time to see that the group above's arrows were pulled back. Link dodged at the last second, and fell to the ground in the process. As Link pulled himself up, the skeletons and moblins on the ground surrounded him. Now encircled, Link thought what to do. Link picked out one skeleton, and side kicked it, causing it to fly into the spiked wall and become stuck. Link then ran out of the circle, and dodged the oncoming arrows. Link then realized that he could use the spikes on the wall to his advantage. As he has this revelation, some of the moblins moved towards LeBaron. Link ran towards him, and slashed them as they closed in. This cost Link his attention, and caused him to miss the skeletons and moblins reloading their bows. As several arrows were shot, one hit Link in the leg. Link collapsed, and took the arrow out of his calf.

Link got up in time to be grabbed by two skeletons, who picked him up and were trying to impale him on the spikes on the wall. As they got closer, Link struggled to reach his boomerang. He did just in time, and threw it at the skeletons. The boomerang ran right through the torsos of the skeletons, causing them to drop Link. Link ran towards a moblin and grabbed it. Link turned around with the moblin just in time to have the barrage of arrows hit the moblin. Link then kicked the moblin towards the wall and it was impaled. Now, few skeletons and moblins remained on bottom. Link took out Reldeif's bow, and fired arrows at the moblins, killing all of them. Now, with only three skeletons left in the pit and one moblin, Link took out the boomerang again and threw it, and then turned his attention to the moblins and skeletons with bows and arrows. They were loaded, and let their arrows fly at Link. Link ducked just in time, and used this time to get the boomerang that had destroyed the skeletons back. He threw that towards the skeletons, and destroyed the skeletons standing there. Link then fired arrows at the moblins, killing all but one. He had his arrow load, as did Link, and they were in a face off. Both fired their arrows, and both avoided being hit. The one remaining moblin in the pit charged at Link. Link fell backwards and kicked the moblin upwards towards the other moblin who was reloading his arrow. The moblin crashed into the barrier where the other moblin was, and caused both to fall back to the pit. Link immediately charged at them, and impaled one on the spikes, and sliced the other with the Master Sword. His battle over, Link went towards LeBaron, and found an awful site. LeBaron had not avoided all arrows; one was protruding from his chest. 

"Llllliiiiiiiiinnnnnkkkkk", said LeBaron with difficulty. "You...must know...what I told Ganondorf...when...he...threatened...me."

"What?"

"Loooooook...I was...entrusted with this information. The sages...the wonders...they...aren't guarding...the Triforce...which lies in the sacred realm. It...was...all a lie...to protect...the one...who does. The one...who...doesn't...know...their fate".

"LeBaron. Who is guarding the Triforce? I must know"

"Zelllllllllllllllllldaaaaaaa".

With those last words, LeBaron's eyes glazed over, and he died.

"No. No. That can't be it. No, you can't be dead. Wake up" screamed Link as he shook LeBaron in vain.

Link got up and gathered himself. He knew Zelda wouldn't be safe for long if Ganondorf knew this. He ran towards the door, and climbed the stairs furiously. He reached the floor on which he entered, and ran towards the castle doors. He jumped down with total disregard for his body, and mounted Epona. Link slapped Epona, and she galloped as fast as she could back towards Hyrule Castle. No matter what, Link must get there and protect Zelda. He had to fulfill his duty as Hero to Hyrule, and as future husband to Zelda. Link couldn't get there fast enough. Eventually, Link reached Hyrule Castle. Link dismounted Epona, and ran into the castle, looking around for Zelda. Link entered the courtyard of the castle and found Zelda, laying on the ground, with her head resting on her arm, and a small stream of blood running from her mouth down her face to her arm. He ran over to her and picked her up and shook her.

"Zelda! Wake up! Wake up Zelda! You, you can't be dead. We were going to get married! We were going to be man and wife!. You have to be alive, I love you Zelda, you can't be dead!"

Mihalich then appeared in the courtyard with his hand against his head, rubbing it. Link ran towards him and grabbed him at the chest.

"What happened?" asked Link

"I don't know. I was knocked unconscious. Is that Zelda? Is she...dead?" 

Link became silent. He didn't want to answer that question. He knew the answer in his mind, but he didn't want to believe it in his heart. He wanted to make it so that if he said nothing, it wouldn't be true. She would be alive, and this would be a terrible terrible dream.

"Where is the entry to the sacred realm?"

"I don't know, Link."

Link dropped Mihalich on the ground, and ran off. He wanted to find out where Ganondorf went, and make him pay for killing Zelda, if it was the last thing he ever did. Link searched the castle furiously, not leaving so much as one stone unturned. Link went deeper into the depths of the castle, where it seemed no man had gone before. Link found a staircase. He descended the stairs as fast as he could; he couldn't rationalize it, but he knew he needed to go this way. Finally, Link reached the bottom. He went through a winding hallway lit by torches. Then, Link found it. There was a doorway at the end of the hall. Link looked inside, and saw that there was an island floating inside it. There, on the island, stood Ganondorf, reaching for the Triforce, which stood on top of a large rock at the edge of the island. Link jumped through the doorway, rolled as he landed on the floating island, and stood up.

"GAAAANNNNNNOOOOOOONNNNNNDDDDOOOOOOORRRRRRRFFFFFFFFF," screamed Link.


	20. The Death of a Hero

**Chapter 20: The Death of a Hero**

"Link," said Ganondorf as he turned around to face Link. "You survived. You are stronger than I thought. But not strong enough. Soon, I will grab the Triforce. And I will be the most powerful man alive!"

"No. I can't allow that." replied Link, drawing his bow back and aiming an arrow at Ganondorf's head. "You killed the only person I ever loved. And now you will pay. I will finish what I was instructed to do by Zelda. Only than can I truly find peace and avenge her death."

"I killed her?" began Ganondorf. "I killed her? No, you have it all wrong. YOU killed her. It was YOU who ran off to fight me. It was YOU who couldn't protect your fiancé. It was all YOU! YOU wanted to be the hero. YOU wanted to kill me. But you didn't. And now look, you are all alone in this world."

Unbeknownst to Link, his body began pulsing with a black and purple light starting around his chest. "YOU LIE! IT WAS ALL YOU! YOU DID IT." The light grew stronger and stronger.

"Why, why do you keep fighting it, Link? You know it to be true. Why are you even here? LeBaron didn't tell you…"

"TELL ME WHAT?"

"There never was a legend of a hero. You are here by a matter of chance. The fact you are still alive amazes everyone. No one expected you to live. Not a soul. The only purpose you serve was to give people hope. What a foolish thing. Hope. What use is hope? NONE. Just like you. You don't have a purpose."

The light emanating from Link's torso grew stronger and stronger with each word Ganondorf spoke.

"YOU LIE!" screamed Link. "IT'S ALL A LIE! Now come here and FIGHT ME"

Ganondorf noticed the light pulsing from Link's torso. He smiled knowingly of what was happening, and continued talking.

"No. I am not going to fight you, Link"

"FIGHT ME, NOW!" The light was now at its strongest. "What…what's happening to me?" The light engulfed Link's body. Link let out a scream of agony, and collapsed on the ground.

"Foolish boy," said Ganondorf. "He doesn't know anything of the Sacred Realm. He let the rage inside him consume him. You can't do that in the Sacred Realm. You'll die."

Ganondorf turned around and reached for the Triforce again. He was inches from it when he heard the twang of a bow, and felt an arrow graze his hair. He turned around to face Link, who had dropped the bow and was facing Ganondorf right back.

"WHAT? You…you can't be alive. You were consumed by rage. No one can survive that."

"I've conquered my darkness once before. I did it again."

"That's impossible"

"Is it? Or are you just afraid that I may be something more than just a foolish hope? That I may actually have a purpose?"

"Your only purpose is to DIE".

Ganondorf unsheathed his sword and charged at Link. Swinging it wildly, he bashed Link's shield, causing the sound to echo across the Sacred Realm. Link was backing up, avoiding the swings of Ganondorf's blade. Finally at the edge of the island, Link fought back. He swiped the Master Sword at Ganondorf's legs. Ganondorf blocked it with his sword, and backed away from Link, who was now swinging the Master Sword recklessly at Ganondorf, charged at Ganondorf, causing him to backstep to the center of the floating rock island. Both raised their blades back, and swung them with all the might in their bodies. The blades crashed against each other, and the great force caused Ganondorf and Link to drop their blades.

"I don't need a blade to finish YOU off," said Ganondorf as he took up his cloak and tossed it to the side. "All I need is THIS".

Ganondorf threw a right hook at Link, and nailed him in the face, just under his left eye. The surprise caused Link to drop his shield as he stumbled backwards from the impact, and was met with a left hook to his jaw. Ganondorf then grabbed Link, forced his body to double over, and kneed Link in the rib cage. Link was unaffected by this blow, thanks to his chain mail. Ganondorf then picked Link up and threw him against the ground. Link rolled on the ground, and crawled towards the Master Sword.

"I can't allow that," said Ganondorf.

Ganondorf walked over towards Link and kicked him in the ribcage, causing Link to flip over onto his back, close to the Master Sword. Ganondorf stepped on Link's arm as he was reaching for the Master Sword. He put his other foot on Link's throat and applied pressure.

"Heh. You thought you could beat ME? Now you will die for thinking such foolish thoughts."

"The…only thing foolish," gasped Link, struggling to get a breath, "Is what you are doing now."

"What?"

Link used his free right arm to grab the ankle of Ganondorf. Link used all the might in his body, aided by the Gauntlets of Damiani, to force Ganondorf off of him and fall to the ground on his back. Link then jumped on Ganondorf, and kept him in place by trapping his torso in between his thighs. Link raised his left hand to punch Ganondorf across the jaw, but Ganondorf was ready, and he used his free legs to knee Link in the back, causing him to flip over Ganondorf's head. Ganondorf ran to his blade, and picked it up. He walked slowly towards Link, savoring every moment of this. Link didn't have the Master Sword, and was on the ground, slowly getting up. Link got up to his feet just in time to see Ganondorf a few feet away, blade raised. Unable to react in time, Link felt a crushing blow against his rib cage, and he fell to the ground. The Chain Mail of Kamarrian protected him from death, but at a price: the chain mail shattered from the blow. Now Link lay on the ground motionless, still gathering himself from the blow.

"Fool." smirked Ganondorf. "You thought you could challenge me? All who have done so have failed. Just like you."

Ganondorf walked over towards the Triforce as Link lay motionless on the ground. Link finally pushed himself up, and got to a knee to see Ganondorf just a few feet away from the Triforce. Link reached for his boomerang and threw it with all his might at Ganondorf. The boomerang whizzed by, and on its way back, caught Ganondorf in the knee, causing him to fall backwards. Furious, he flipped over to his stomach and pushed himself up, glaring at Link.

"Why won't you die?"

"Because you still live"

Link pushed himself up, still unarmed. Ganondorf charged at Link, and swung his blade. Link blocked the blade by shoving his arm against Ganondorf's blade arm. Link then punched Ganondorf in the stomach, causing him to fly backwards. Link used this opportunity to run over and retrieve the Master Sword. Now, both he and Ganondorf were armed. They charged at each other with their blades, and the blades met each other in mid air, each pressing against the other. Link and Ganondorf struggled to gain control, and pushed each other's blades back and forth, waiting for the other to slip up. Ganondorf, realizing he was losing as his blade got closer and closer to his chest, kneed Link in the gut, causing Link to double over. Then, he swung his sword, and sliced Link's right arm. Blood now poured from the wound and stained Link's tunic as he stepped backwards clutching his arm. Ganondorf swung at Link again, and Link was unable to avoid this blow as well. More blood poured from his body and stained his clothing, this time from his thigh. Link stopped clutching his arm and now used his forearm to apply pressure on his wound, while supporting himself as he was doubled over. Ganondorf walked up to the struggling Link, and kicked him in the face, causing a loud cracking noise as Link was thrown backwards from the impact. Link's nose was broken, and now blood flew from his nostrils, down his face.

Suddenly, the sages appeared at the barrier to the sacred realm. Gavas tried to enter to come and fight Ganondorf, but was stopped by the barrier.

"What's this then?" asked Gavas.

"The barrier won't let anyone else in" said Sekim. "They are meant to fight".

"No, Link's getting killed," said Norclas. "There has to be something we can do".

"Unfortunately, there is nothing we can do" said Denpolent somberly.

"Is it true?" asked McKay of the Forest. "Is Zelda dead?"

"Yes, it is" replied Rinoma, with a tear in his eye. "Can you do anything, Denpolent?"

"No, I can't bring anyone back from the dead".

"Damn. So there's nothing we can do but wait here and watch" said McKay of the Forest.

"Indeed" said Denpolent. "Now that the barrier is sealed, neither Ganondorf nor Link can see or hear us. But we can see and hear everything that goes on."

"There's got to be another way" said Gavas.

"There isn't" replied Denpolent. "We can only hope."

Link was struggling to get up, and spitting the blood that ran into his mouth from his nose out. Ganondorf closed in him, ready to deliver the final blow.

"Serve your purpose, and die".

Ganondorf swung the blade at Link, who was now on one knee. Watching it carefully, Link bent his head to the side at the last second, causing the blade to miss. Link swung the Master Sword at Ganondorf's legs, causing him to stumble a bit. Link got up to a stand, and swung the Master Sword at Ganondorf, connecting directly with Ganondorf's arm, creating a large wound at the elbow. Blood stained Ganondorf's attire as he backed up, distancing himself from Link. Link charged, and swung the Master Sword again. Ganondorf was ready this time. He dodged the attack, and countered with one of his own. He swung his blade at Link's torso, and connected with three loud cracks. He didn't hit Link with the edge of the blade, but the broad side of it, and the force broke three of Link's ribs. Link screamed out in pain, and doubled over, dropping the Master Sword and clutching his ribs. Ganondorf grabbed Link by the collar, and held him in place. He drew his sword back, and readied it to stab Link in the throat as Link looked up. Link did the only thing he could think. He kicked Ganondorf in his weak leg, and caused him to fall backwards. Link limped towards the Master Sword, clutching his ribs with his right hand. He picked it up and turned to face Ganondorf. Ganondorf charged at Link, who was ready. He blocked his attack with the Master Sword, and countered with a slice, cutting Ganondorf's shoulder. Ganondorf stepped his shoulder and stepped backwards as Link doubled over from the pain in his ribs after exerting the effort to block the attack.

"Impressive, Link. But it will be for naught. Look at yourself, you can barely stand up."

"So long as I can move, Ganondorf, I will keep fighting".

Ganondorf stopped clutching his shoulder and dashed towards Link. Link couldn't get out of the way in time, and was tackled to the ground. Ganondorf reached in Link's tunic and grabbed the grappling hook, and tied it around Link's throat. He forced Link to stand up and pulled back on the rope of the grappling hook with all his might. Link grabbed the rope around his throat, struggling to stay alive. With a burst of energy, Link quickly moved his hands to Ganondorf's shoulders, and flipped him over. The move saved Link's live, but cost him energy, and he lay on the ground. Both men got up slowly, and circled each other. Ganondorf was the first to charge. Link braced himself, and sidestepped him at the last moment. With a brief moment to attack, Link elbowed Ganondorf in the back, and then doubled over in pain. Fighting his pain, he lifted the Master Sword. He was too slow, as Ganondorf punched Link across the face again, causing him to spin around. He then slashed Link across the back, causing Link to fall forward. Blood now stained Link's back, as he was crawling away from Ganondorf to try and get up.

"Only a matter of moments now, Link. You're losing too much blood. You can't survive much longer".

"I…only have to…survive…long enough…to see your death".

"Insolence. The refuge of the doomed"

Ganondorf walked over to Link and picked him up by the scruff of his neck. He threw him down on the ground, and watched happily as Link rolled over. Struggling, Link got up to one knee, and then stood up. Ganondorf charged at Link yet again, and the two exchanged sword blows, never allowing the other to land a strike. Ganondorf forced Link to the edge of the floating island. He raised his sword, but Link was ready. He quickly slashed Ganondorf's leg, and bought himself time to get out of the corner. Now, he had Ganondorf cornered. He backed up a step as Ganondorf was clutching his leg, and kicked Ganondorf in the face. Ganondorf's body flew off the island, and fell to the abyss below. Link sheathed the Master Sword, and uttered two words.

"It's over".

He turned around to walk out of the Sacred Realm, when suddenly, the grappling hook Ganondorf took wrapped around his body, and the hook bit into his ribcage, causing blood to flow from the three tiny wounds. Caught off guard, Link was pulled off the island, and was falling with Ganondorf. The rope in between them caught on a small floating rock island, and caused much pain to Link was his free fall was stopped immediately. Now, both Link and Ganondorf were suspended, each being the counter weight for the other. They were hanging several feet below the island, facing each other a few feet apart.

"See Link? You can never defeat me. I will always win. So why don't you join me, Link?"

"Never"

"Oh really?"

"Yea"

"Do you know the power of the Triforce?"

"No, nor do I care."

"You should. It can bring people back to life, Link. You can bring Zelda back to life. You two can lie happily ever after, Link. Don't you want that? To live with Zelda, forever and ever? All you have to do is help me get out of this predicament and up to that island. But first, there is something standing in the way of your happiness."

"What's that?" asked Link, interested in this offer.

"The Master Sword on your back. Just drop it into the Sacred Realm. Then, you can bring Zelda back and live with her. Just one simple thing. I know you can do it Link."

Memories of Zelda flowed through his mind. Their first meeting. Their first kiss. His proposal. Every happy memory he ever felt with her came to his mind, encouraging him to let go, to be with her again. Link unsheathed the Master sword obediently, and held it out, preparing to let go. Then suddenly, one more memory came to Link. Zelda's voice echoed throughout his mind.

"There exists a man by the name of Ganondorf. He seeks the Triforce for his own evil purposes. And his only way to achieve his goal is to wreak havoc upon the wonders. You, you Link are the chosen one that will prevent this" the voice said.

Link now knew what he must do.

"You're right Ganondorf" said Link, as he held out the Master Sword.

"Yes Link, I am."

"My only purpose in life is to die"

"What?"

Link brought the Master Sword closer to him, and cut the rope that suspended him as his life flashed before his eyes. Being tormented at school. Selling his first sword. Meeting Zelda. Falling in love. His quest to stop Ganondorf. Link was now falling towards the abyss below, and, with no counterweight to support him, Ganondorf fell as well.

"Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo" shouted Ganondorf.

Ganondorf fell into the abyss, never to be seen again. Link's body fell and hit a small floating island. Link died on impact.


End file.
